Where I am Home
by Ruven aka Lee
Summary: A hole in the sky, a strange elf with a daughter, and a quest to stop the world from being ripped asunder. And maybe a romance to bring it all together.
1. Prologue: The Elf and the Breach

A/N: It has been awhile since I wrote anything on here. I had been intending to do a sequel to the last story I wrote, but life got in the way and it simply never panned out. But! I had inspiration for a new story and have been writing it since. This one is a take on Dragon Age Inquisition with an Elven Inquisitor but with a bit of a twist to it. I won't give away spoilers and just let you read for yourselves to decide if where I go with this is good or not. I added in some elven to this chapter, but all I can do is hope I didn't butcher it. For longer segments where the conversation is in Elven and I wanted you guys to know what they were saying, I simply put it in italics. So italics=Elven here. For those interested in the DA Elven language I did find a pretty awesome guy that's working on fleshing it out, fenxshiral and his Project Elvhen, and I would recommend taking a look. His work is well thought out. And as always with these things, everything to do with Dragon Age, Dragon Age Inquisition, Bioware, and all their properties belong to Bioware themselves. I do not own the rights to anything they created and would never claim as such. If I did then I probably wouldn't be broke right now. On that note, please read and I hope you all enjoy it.

Prologue: The Elf and the Breach

The elf had long raven hair that was kept in a loose braid, her eyes were silvery and her skin a rich almond. She wasn't very tall and her face carried a deep green Vallaslin with the markings of Mythal, she wore hardy traveling clothes that were well worn. She was on her knees, heavy chains holding her down as a quartet of guards stood over her menacingly. Cassandra stormed into the room as Leliana followed and glared down at the elf, this was the woman that had been found at the center of the blast? The one they said emerged from the fade itself? A sickly green glow emanated from her hand, it pulsed and the womans body stiffened as her face contorted into a grimace. Cassandra leaned in close, "Tell me why we shouldn't kill you now? Everyone that was at the conclave is dead, except for you." The elf sat in silence, not looking at Cassandra herself and instead looking around the room. She grabbed the woman's shackled hand and held it up to her face, "Explain THIS!" The woman gritted her teeth as the mark pulsed bright again and gasped out "Ame'banal vi'dirth'ma!"

Cassandra scowled and grabbed her shirt to haul her forward, "What did she say? What did you say!" Leliana stepped in and grabbed the Seekers shoulder, "Cassandra! We need her." Cassandra let the elf go with a huff. "Do you know what she said?" The Nightingale sighed, "My elven is a bit rusty but... I think she said she doesn't speak our language." Cassandra scowled, "She must be lying!" The spy master could only shrug in answer and Cassandra looked at the elf, "Do not lie to me, tell me what happened at the conclave!" The elf looked confused and when Cassandra moved to grab her again she shifted back and put up her imprisoned hands to ward off the human, "Mana! Ir abelas ame'banal vi'dirth'ma! Ame'banal vi'dirth'ma!" The Seeker scowled at her before motioning for the chains to be released, "Leliana go to the forward camp. I will bring the prisoner to look at the breach, maybe that will get her to say something that makes sense." The other woman hesitated just a moment before nodding and heading to the front lines.

The Seeker replaced the chains with ropes and when the elf was pulled outside she starred up at the hole in the sky, horror filling her face at the sight. Cassandra hesitated at that. Was that the look of the one who caused this? No that was the look of someone that had no idea what she was seeing, "We call it the Breach. It opened when the conclave exploded." There was a massive pulse from the Breach and it sent the elven woman screaming to her knees as the mark responded. She gasped for air as the glow faded and Cassandra helped her a bit roughly to her feet, "The mark is killing you. Every time the Breach grows, so does it. Do you still want to say you can't understand me?" The elf gave her a pained look and answered in a pleading tone, "Ame'banal vi'dirth'ma."

Cassandra sighed in frustration, "What were you even doing at the conclave if you don't understand the common tongue? No matter." She pulled the elf along through the camp and people glared at them. As they walked the elf seemed to compose herself a bit, her face being pulled into a stoney mask. The Seeker studied her, "They have determined your guilt already. You can tell that they blame you can't you? Even without words, without even knowing there is something you are being blamed for, you know these looks don't you?" The elf had no words to offer but Cassandra continued anyway, "The conclave was called by the Divine to create peace between the mages and Templar, it was our best chance to end the fighting. She brought their leaders together, but now they're dead as is she. We lash out, like the sky that rains down upon us, but we must think beyond ourselves, as she did, until the Breach is sealed." She pulled a dagger and saw the elven woman's look harden and grow darker. Cassandra looked her in the eye a moment before grabbing the other womans hands and cutting the rope pointedly, "There will be a trial. That is all I can promise. Now come, we do not have far to go and we must see if your mark can do what we hope it will." The elf rubbed her hands and watched the Seeker gesture for her to follow. The woman paused before slowly nodding and following Cassandra.

Her hand burned like it was being shoved into a fire repeatedly. She had no idea what was happening anymore, who this human was that led her along the path, but it was clear that something terrible was happening. And it had something to do with the strange and almost obscene magic that burned in the center of her right hand. When the hole in the sky pulsed again her hand burned as though she was being stabbed while shoved into the fire and she barely kept her feet but the human, Cassandra she thought she had been called by the other one, grabbed her arm and steadied her. Her grip was rough but not unkind, as though she had already figured out that the elf wasn't to blame for... well she wasn't sure what the people back behind them had blamed her for but it was something important enough to earn a killing rage. The anger in the air was palpable. They were crossing a bridge and Cassandra was speaking again, but they didn't make it across before a stone wreathed in green flames slammed into the bridge. No one had time to react before they plunged down to slam into the frozen river. The ice broke under the weight of the stones from the bridge and the elf found herself plunged into the freezing waters.

She swam desperately to the surface as soon as she found her senses again and thanked the gods when she found herself next to a hole in the ice. Had she drifted under the thick ice... she banished the thought as she pulled herself out of the waters. She gasped and shivered as ice already began to reform on her clothes but didn't have time to think on it. She looked about and froze when she saw the human fighting demons. What were demons doing here? It quickly didn't matter in face of the shade that spotted her and started making its way to her. She cast about quickly but there was no readily available weapons, so she used what she had and lifted her hands to send a torrent of fire pouring from her hands. The shades death scream echoed into the fade as burned and was sent back to where it had come from. She scrambled to her feet and watched as the Seeker killed the last demon. Cassandra advanced on the elf with a menacing look so she did the first thing she could think of and spread her hands to her sides to show she meant no harm. She winced a bit when the human lifted her blade before she paused and sighed. The blade lowered and she went over to the rubble silently. The elf lowered her hands as the human returned with a sword, she said something and held out the blade to her hilt first. She slowly took the blade and Cassandra huffed her face translating the next words all on its own, "Come elf." As she turned to leave the elf called to her, "Emma Irasir'in." The Seeker stopped and gave her a questioning look and the elf took a deep breath and put a hand on her chest, " 'Ma'melin Irasir'in." _My name is Irasir'in._

Their progress through the snow was slow and cold, Irasir'ins clothes were stiff with ice as the water froze in the frigid air and caused her no small amount of discomfort. She didn't complain though, there was nothing to be done about it and her companion wouldn't know what she was saying anyway. Better to save the breath and try to breath in as little cold air as she could. She warmed up a bit when more demons attacked them, she used her magic to beat them back instead of the blade. The fire spells hurt the shades more than the blade would and the bursts of heat were welcome. They started up another hill and Irasir'in heard the fighting before they saw it, the clearing in front of them had a handful of soldiers fighting alongside a dwarf crossbowmen and an elf mage. They were fighting more demons but what drew Irasir'in's eye was the rift. A hole torn in the very fabric of reality, the veil itself shredded to let the fade pour into the real world.

She snapped out of it as Cassandra charged into the fray with a battle cry. The elf spread her hands and began casting spells, tossing fire and lightning into the demons from behind the front lines. The soldiers pushed forward, their moral rising with the reinforcements and sight of the Seeker tearing into the demons. The fade born beasts fell back under the renewed assault and eventually Irasir'in found herself standing beside the other elf. They grew close to the rift and Irasir'in wondered what they would do once they got there. Did this other mage have a way to close it? The answer became clear in a most painful fashion when the elf yelled something in the common tongue to her and grabbed her arm to push it up to the rift. She felt the power surge from the mark as tendrils of green power shot out to connect with the hole in the veil. She felt it draw from deep in her mana supply to stitch reality back together and close the rift that allowed the demons to come forth. Once it was closed the demons seemed to shrink away, their source of power was gone and it made them easy prey for the surviving soldiers.

The elf panted a bit as the last demon fell before he regained his composure and said something to her in the common tongue, the dwarf speaking to them both as well before Cassandra interrupted him. There was a brief conversation before the elf turned to her, _"It seems that the Seeker believes you do not speak the common tongue. She has asked me to translate."_ Irasir'in let out a gust of air and relaxed a bit when she finally heard her own language, _"That's because I don't speak the human tongue. It's a relief to hear someone else that speaks the language of The People."_ The elf paused as he studied her, _"You're serious aren't you? Interesting. I thought that all of The People... well no matter. My name is Solas, and you are?"_ The elf bowed a bit, _"Greetings Solas, I am Irasir'in. It is a pleasure to meet you"_ Solas smiled a bit, _"It is a pleasure to meet you too. What clan do you hail from?"_ Irasir'in gave him an indecipherable look, _"I do not hail from any clan. I am simply a wanderer that has lost her path."_ Solas nodded slowly and spoke to Cassandra for a moment before continuing, _"Well Irasir'in, much as I would like to ask more about that it seems that we are short on time and I need to ask you a few questions that are of more importance."_

She nodded, _"Of course. Ask what you will."_ The other elf spoke to the Seeker again and passed on the question, _"What were you doing at the Conclave? Do you know what caused the explosion?"_ Irasir'in shook her head, _"I don't know. On both accounts, I have no memory of even being there. I remember I was traveling with my..."_ Her face filled with terror, _"Oh gods no. No no no, was I alone when they found me?"_ Solas blinked at her, _"What? Yes, why-"_ She grabbed the front of his shirt and pulled him forward, _"Are you sure? There wasn't a girl with me? A young elf, no more than eight!"_ Understanding crossed his face, _"I... no. We saw no child with you, or in the area. She might be safe back at the village though."_ Irasir'in gripped his shirt tightly for a few seconds before releasing him. She stepped back, oblivious to the swords Cassandra and the surviving soldiers had pulled on her as she started muttering to herself, _"The village. We didn't... no no she must have gotten out. She has to be at this village... or the woods! Yes she has to be out there... she has to be safe."_

Solas spoke to the Seeker softly before coming over and putting a hand on her shoulder, _"Wherever she is I am certain she is fine. We can look for her later, but right now we have to close the Breach."_ The elf woman stood still a moment with her eyes closed before she opened them, fire and steel filling them, _"What is the Breach? That hole in the sky?"_ Solas nodded and she continued, _"If it needs to be closed before we find her then so be it. I will close this Breach and kill everything that stands in the way."_ The soldiers looked suddenly nervous so the look on her face must have shown her intentions full, and all except Cassandra, Solas, and the dwarf took a cautious step away from her. The human and dwarf exchanged a look as Solas translated but Irasir'in didn't wait for him to finish, she stalked past the group silently to continue down the path that would lead her to the Breach. And hopefully her daughter.

The march to the next camp wasn't every long but there were enough demons on the way there to make it hard. She fought with a singular determination, her blade was quickly stained with the blood of demons and lightning still sparked between her fingers when the entered the forward camp. When they got inside the humans began to argue, Cassandra and the red head from earlier arguing with a man in a fancy hat and cleric robes. The way he gestured to her and the anger on his face made his thoughts clear enough to Irasir'in but she ignored them in favor of starring into the hole in the sky before speaking to Solas, _"This arguing is a waste of time."_ The other elf cast her a sideways glance, _"Oh? The Seeker and the Nightingale are... enthusiastically discussing what to do next with the chancellor, but if you have input..."_

She snorted, _"Discussing you say. They argue as children without parents here to tell them what to do. They should gather all their troops and we should march on the rift, retake the ground lost by force and seal that hole while we still can. The longer we wait, the more demons there will be waiting for us there and anymore 'discussion' is pointless in the face of that."_ Solas studied her a moment before turning to the humans and adding his own voice to the mix. There was silence at his words, a pause before the chancellor started yelling again as Cassandra and this Nightingale started calling out to their men. The troops started running about and organizing as Solas turned to her and motioned for her to follow him, _"It would seem that the Seeker and her counterpart agree with you. We are moving on the rift without delay."_ Irasir'in kept her face neutral, _"They would listen to the words of not only an elf but their prisoner?"_ Solas smirked, _"They would listen to words of wisdom certainly. Whose mouth they came from mean little."_ Irasir'in snorted, _"I see. Well since they are willing to listen to us, then we should not disappoint. Besides I have someone I need to find and I would rather find her sooner rather than later."_

The fight to the temple was harsh and she walked upon a path that had been paved by the life blood of the men and woman who fought beside her. She did not let that thought slow her though, death was just a part of the path warrior took. Her blade bit into demons, her magics burned them, and she gritted her teeth against the pain that flared in her hand whenever she sealed a rift or the Breach pulsed again. Finally the flow of demons tapered off and stopped as they arrived at the remains of the Temple itself. She murmured a soft prayer to the dead for those that died getting them this far and for those that died here in the Conclave itself. Cassandra lead her into a crater below the glowing rift, a place where blood red lyrium grew from the walls, she gave the crystals an uneasy look before making sure she walked as far away from the stuff as she could. She could feel the wrongness, the rot that lay inside of them, in her very bones. The magic in her blood cringed when she came near one and it put her on edge. She jumped when she heard voices echoing from the fade and frowned at Solas as the humans began to talk with disbelieving looks and the dwarf said something looking extremely serious, _"What is it they're saying?"_

Solas listened as the voice from the fade returned and faded away, _"It would seem that the first voice was that of our enemy. The second was the humans Divine calling for he-"_ Her own voice echoed back and cut him off, _"Malas wait! Stay back!"_ The Seeker advanced on her and began to yell again but Irasir'in ignored her as the blood drained from her face, _"No. No Malas couldn't be there. If she was... no..."_ Solas spoke to the Seeker until the woman growled something and stormed into the crater as the elf took Irasir'in's shoulders, _"There's no reason to think the worst yet. You came out alive, she may have as well. We won't know for sure unless we look for her, and we can't do that until the Breach is closed. So close it quickly and we will find out."_ Irasir'in nodded slowly, _"What do I need to do?"_

The ground shook under the footsteps of the pride demon, the Breach hanging above the battle that rage below like a guillotine. Irasir'in pushed herself to her feet, blood running down the side of her face from where the beast had backhanded her away from the rift when she attempted to close it. Cassandra grabbed her arm to steady her, saying something in the common tongue. Irasir'in looked at her broken sword and tossed it to the side. She retrieved a sword from a dead soldier that lay next to her and gave the Seeker a look filled with steel and fire, she might not speak the same language as the human but she knew what needed to be done. She pointed to the pride demon wordlessly and then to herself before she made a motion to indicate she was going to go around behind it. She pointed at Cassandra and pointed to the opposite side of the demon, the Seeker nodded her understanding and hurried off. Irasir'in made her way behind the demon silently, watching as Cassandra engaged the beast. She cast about and found the body of another fallen soldier, she relieved him of his weapon and squared up on the pride demon.

She bolted into a silent run, arms held low to keep the weapons out of her way as she went. Finally she got close enough and jumped, slamming her blades into the pride demons back. The beast roared at her and staggered a bit, massive arms reaching for his back trying to grab her and flailing about when he couldn't reach. She hung onto the blades tight as the demon bucked at her, spinning and turning in place. Arrows thumped into the demon, blades cut into its legs, and spells splashed against his hide. She gritted her teeth and tapped into her reserves of mana, a surge of magic being channeled through her blades into the demon to burn him from the inside. The beast roared in pain, flame and polluted smoke pouring from his mouth. Cassandra screamed a war cry as she plunged her blade into the demons guts, the damage finally breaking the demons back and sending it toppling forward to the ground. Irasir'in pushed herself to her feet gasping, she had used far too much magic in that last blow but she knew that she still had to push herself on. She stood on the back of the demons body and raised her hand into the air, a surge of green energy lashing out from her hand to slam into the Breach, ripples of power repairing the damage and smoothing the edges before the rift was stabilized and sealed from further incursion.

She screamed as the mark tore the last of the mana from her body, stripping her of every ounce of magic it could for its purpose. She gasped and nearly collapsed on the spot, staggering as she was released from the grips of the power she used. She panted and reached into her shirt to pull out a pendant. She had felt tired when she had first woken in the cell and now she understood why. The pendant had drawn on her power, tapped into her mana pool to fuel its sister. Hope surged in her as it picked up on the flickering remains of the twin nearby, she stumbled forward and off the demon. She heard Cassandra call to her as she hauled herself up and forward, tripping and falling over herself to get to follow the pendant to a pile of rubble. She dug barehanded through the rubble, praying to whatever gods could hear her she would find her. Find Malas.

She found it, a mana shield that was barely there and flickering away slowly. Cassandra caught up to and saw the bubble. She looked confused and said something to Irasir'in but she ignored the human and cleared the rest of the rubble. Under the rubble and soot from the explosion was a cocoon of magic, something that easily popped the moment she touched it. Sitting inside of the hole there was a scared little elf girl, a tiny reflection of the crying woman that pulled the child into her arms and held her daughter as though letting go would mean the end of the world. Which to Irasir'in, losing this girl would be just that. She heard the humans talking around her, but it meant little to her right then. All that mattered was Malas, the tiny life that held onto her mother tight and cried along with Irasir'in as she repeated, "Mamae! Mamae! Mamae!" Her voice was muffled as she shoved her face into her mothers chest. The world fell away from her piece by piece as the relief of finding her daughter and the exhaustion from the fighting caught up to her, the elf silently passing out with the her life and her soul held tight to her chest.

A/N: And as it always should and will be, please feel free to review. Till next time. (Minor edit already to mess with spacing. Consider anything I write subject to minor edits from now till... well forever)


	2. A girl with a flower

A/N: No I do not intend to post two chapters at once all the time. I plan to have a buffer and publish my dabbling once a week. That said this is a new story so I figured what the hey. In case anyone was curious, the names of our two elves are condensed Elven. Irasir'in means Where I am home and Malas My Hope. As usual I don't Dragon Age or Bioware or anything and blah blah blah legal words here. Once again italics=Elven.

Chapter One: A Girl With a Flower

Irasir'in woke slowly and groaned as pain wracked her body. She blinked at the ceiling a moment and felt a familiar warmth shift at her side. With her heart in her throat she checked the bed beside her and sighed in relief when she saw Malas there, the child sleeping soundly beside her as she usually did. Irasir'in shut her eyes and relaxed, feeling like everything was right with the world once more. She stayed that way until the door to her cabin opened and soft footsteps came in. Irasir'in carefully sat up, making sure not to disturb the sleeping girl. An elven servant was quietly putting a box in the room, freezing when she turned to leave and saw Irasir'in awake. She silently put a finger to her lips and pointed down to the sleeping child. The servant swallowed nervously and nodded, saying something soft in the common tongue before hurrying out. Irasir'in frowned at the skittish movements of the servant but dismissed it for now in favor of gently touching her daughters arm. She spoke softly, _" Malas. Malas my darling, wake up. It's time to greet a new day and new dawn my heart."_ The girl shifted and murmured something unintelligible. There was a pause before she shot up right, _"Mother!"_ Irasir'in laughed as the little girl grabbed her and threatened to break her ribs in a tight hug, _"It's good to see you too Malas."_ The girl began to cry then sob, _"I-I-I thought y-y-you had died! With the boom and the yelling and lights and screaming!"_ Her mothers eyes softened as she stroked the girls head, _"Hush now child. Hush. I am fine. I am fine and so are you. We're together again, and nothing can stop me from always getting back to you."_ Malas cried into her mothers side and they simply sat there, Irasir'in making soft comforting sounds.

After awhile there was a knock on her door and a voice called through the door, _"Irasir'in? It's Solas, the servant said you were awake."_ She sighed, _"Come in."_ The other elf pushed inside, _"How are you feeling? Well rested I hope."_ Irasir'in nodded, _"Yes thank you. How long was I out?"_ He shut the door, _"A couple days. She wouldn't leave your side the entire time."_ He nodded to Malas, who was watching Solas suspiciously as they talked. Irasir'in smiled, _"I thought as much."_ She paused, _"So... is the Breach properly closed or...?"_ Solas shook his head, _"We need more power to close it properly, but it is stable now and the demons stopped pouring out."_ She relaxed, _"I see. Then I bought you all time to figure out how to close it. Well since that's taken care of, I expected that the humans will be passing judgment on me soon._ " Solas frowned, _"What makes you say that?"_ Irasir'in snorted, _"What else would they do? I don't think that they will blame me for all this, but it seems I was there. Not that I can remember why..."_ Solas looked at Malas, _"What about you child? Do you know why you and your mother were at the Conclave?"_ She buried her face into Irasir'in side and her mother sighed, _"Malas, it's important. Do you know what we were doing there?_ "She peeked up at Irasir'in, squeaking out, _"Cause you said the Dreadwolf would be there."_

She frowned, _"The Dread... did I say why I thought that?"_ The girl shook her head, _"You just told me that you had to go. N that I should stay close to you while we searched the Shemlins temple... but I heard yelling and someone sounded scared, so I wanted to go see if they needed help... Then there was yelling and angry Shemlin, and a creepy man, and a floating woman... You told me to come back and then there was more yelling... and you put me into the bubble usin that old necklace."_ She nodded silently, _"I take it the necklace didn't survive?"_ Malas shook her head, _"Sorry mama."_ She smiled, _"It's alright. So long as it kept you safe my dear."_ Irasir'in looked up at Solas, _"Well, there you have it. Unless I can remember more, I was searching for the Dreadwolf. Why I was looking among the humans, I don't know."_ Solas nodded slowly, _"Well regardless, the Lady Seeker and her peers wish to speak to you in the chantry. They probably need the mark in your hand to close the other rifts that have been opening, so they'll likely want you to stick around."_ Irasir'in sighed, _"Of course they do..."_ She looked down at Malas for a few moments before nodding, _"Alright, let's go talk to them then. I hope you will be on hand to translate?"_ Solas nodded, _"I will indeed. After we've finished with the humans though, I would suggest we start teaching you some of the common tongue. I can't always be there to translate after all._ " Irasir'in sighed, _"I guess it was inevitable that I would have to learn it. Let's not keep them waiting then."_ She stood up, the motion being accompanied by complaining noises from Malas, _"Hush my child. I have to go and see what the humans have to say. I want you to stay here though, and keep out of trouble. Can you do that for me Malas?"_ The girl looked unhappy but grudgingly nodded, _"Come back soon though ok?"_ Irasir'in smiled, " _Of course my dear. As soon as I can._ "

The meeting was dull since everything said was basically said second hand to her. She agreed to help the newly declared Inquisition seal the Breach and the rifts that now doted the world, it wasn't really a question of if she would or not when these things threatened her daughter same as they threatened everyone else. The next few weeks were a bit chaotic but she got a lot more done than anyone expected. Her use of the common tongue improved quickly, and by the end of the third week she could passably hold conversations. She still need a bit of help with some words and more complex notions, but she had always had a gift for languages. Malas was slowly starting to warm up to living in Haven, latching onto Cassandra of all the people. Not that Irasir'in minded that since the girl could use a friend among the humans. One day she went looking for Malas and found her watching the Seeker going through her morning exercises, the steady thwack of metal on wood seeming to draw the girl into a trance. She smiled a bit at her and ruffled her hair before calling to the Seeker, "Good morning to you Lady Seeker." Cassandra paused, "Ah Herald. A good morning to you too." Irasir'in winced at the title, to say she wasn't a fan of it was an understatement. The other woman frowned at her reaction, "You should try not to react that way when people call you by that title. Even if you don't like it, it does bring people hope. And hope is in short supply these days." Irasir'in sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "I suppose so. I would still prefer you at least call me by my name."

She watched as Cassandra went back to her routine and Malas pulled at Irasir'in sleeve. She leaned down and the girl whispered in her ear, " _Miss Cassandra is really pretty mama."_ Irasir'in smiled, _"Yes dear she is. A bit serious though."_ Malas eyes glittered as her own smile widened, _"I think she would look super pretty with a smile. Ooo! I wanna see if I can make her smile!"_ Irasir'in smiled at her, _"A very sweet thing to want to do. Well how bout this. You go to your language lesson with Solas and after that I'll help you find a way to make her smile."_ Malas groaned, _"But mama, Solas is soooo booooring."_ Irasir'in laughed, _"Oh he's not so bad Malas. And he probably knows even more about the world and the fade than me. More importantly,"_ She booped the little girls nose, _"You need to learn the human tongue too. Now go on and get to your lesson before you're late."_ Malas groaned, _"Alright mama I'll go."_ Irasir'in looked up and saw that Cassandra was watching them talk. She leaned down and pointed it out to Malas, the girl bushed a bit and waved at the Seeker before running off into Haven. Cassandra watched the girl run before looking back at Irasir'in, "What was that about?"

The elf waved it off, "Just sending Malas off to her lesson with Solas. She still needs to learn the common." She paused and mulled over the sentence a moment, "That did not sound right..." Cassandra turned back to the training dummy, "I think you meant, learn the Common tongue. Or learn to speak the Common language." Irasir'in cocked her head to the side, "More the second than the first. Your language uses so many words to say little. It is... for the most part the other way for the Elvhen." Cassandra frown, "What do you mean?" Irasir'in thought for a time, "Well... let's say that you have had a lover that has been far from home for too long. How would you say you miss him?" Cassandra blinked, "I... I do not know. I have no such lover." Irasir'in waved her hand, "Irrelevant. Think for a moment if you did, how would you describe the feeling of them being gone?" She hesitated, "I suppose... if I were to have such happen... I would say that I missed them terribly, and that..." She glanced around to see if anyone else was listening, "And... this is very silly, what does this have to do with your language?" Irasir'in sighed, _"Mi'nas'salin."_ Cassandra frowned, "What?" The elf crossed her arms, "It is something that expresses how much it hurts to miss someone so important. There is no real translation to it, but the closest would be.. the knife again in my soul." The Seeker blinked, "Oh..." She nodded, "We have many words like that to make big thoughts into... well small words. Some times our sentences can drag on as well, but not like with the common tongue. Not without being said to fill in the gaps or drag something out." Cassandra seemed to mull over her words as Irasir'in heard the rapid crunching of tiny feet running on snow.

She turned and raised an eyebrow at Malas as she ran back to them, slowing down and hurriedly shoving a handful of something behind her back, _"Mama... could you help me say something?"_ Irasir'in smiled, _"I thought I told you to go to your lesson."_ Malas pulled a face, _"I knooow. But I found something that I think the Lady Seeker will like!"_ She hesitated, _"But... um... can you tell me how to tell her somethin?"_ Irasir'in sighed and nodded, _"Alright, but if you don't go directly to your lesson after..."_ Malas grinned and ran up to her mother, the two whispering back and forth. Cassandra frowned at them but didn't interrupt and concentrating on her exercises. She was almost done after all. She heard the girl approach and stopped to look down at Malas. She still had her hands behind her back and looked at Irasir'in for silent support. When her mother nodded she took a deep breath and looked up at the Seeker to speak slowly and carefully, "Lady Cassandra. I think... very pretty and wanted give this to you." She thrust out her hand, a small bunch of flowers held up proudly for Cassandras purview. The Seeker blinked at the flowers and the smiling girl holding them, her hesitation causing the child to nervously look back at her mother. Irasir'in leaned forward a bit, "She wants you to take them Seeker."

The warrior jumped, "Oh of course! Yes ah thank you. They are very pretty." She took the flowers and gave the child an uncertain smile at first but it widened when the girl beamed back at her before running back to Irasir'in, _"Mama mama she smiled! She does look prettier when she smiles!"_ Irasir'in laughed, _"Why yes she does. You've done well my darling, but now it's time for learning."_ Malas moved to protest but her mother lifted a finger, _"No. No more of that. You must learn, and Solas is the best one to teach you. Now go on, go before he gets upset with you for being too late."_ The child sighed in defeat and trudged off. Cassandra held the flowers a bit awkwardly but smiling none the less, "She is... a very sweet little girl." Irasir'in nodded, "She seems to have decided she likes you Seeker. Thinks you are very pretty."

Cassandra examined the flowers before carefully placing them to the side, "...Do you think I did the right thing?" Irasir'in frowned, "What do you mean?" She sighed in frustration and started to walk, "What I have set in motion could destroy everything I revered, cast aside much of what I believed in. One day they may write of me as a traitor, a heretic, and a madwoman." Irasir'in's face grew serious, "You did what you had to do. You had no real choice." The Seeker looked her in the eye, "Didn't I? My trainers always told me I was too brash, that I had to stop and think more. I see what is in front of me and what must be done, and I do it. But I misjudged you, I thought at the beginning that you were responsible for the explosion, for all the destruction. Then I see you digging so desperately in the rubble for your child..." She shook her head, "I thought I knew the answer clear as day and I was wrong. I cannot afford to be so careless again." Irasir'in gave her a steady look, "You had good reason to think it was me. If I had been in your shoes, I would have thought the same."

Cassandra sighed again and started walking back to the tents, "I wanted to blame someone, anyone, for what happened. I wanted to catch the culprit so badly that I did not care who it was I caught." Irasir'in answered that softly, "I understand far better than you would think Seeker. What is important is that we learn from such mistakes, and grow from them. It is far better to have learned than to have done nothing." Cassandra stopped and looked back at Irasir'in. There was a moment of silence before, "You reject the title of Herald, saying you are no chosen one. Being that you are an elf, do you even believe in the Maker or in your own gods?" Irasir'in gave that some serious thought for a few moments, "I cannot say if I believe in the Maker your chantry prays to. But I will not say that you are wrong. The Elven gods did not create the Earth or the fade, but rather were born of the world as we were. I see no reason why this Maker could not have been the one to have created the world, and there is plenty of room in the heavens for another god." Cassandra studied the elven woman before her, wondering at her answer a moment, "...I see. That was a... surprising answer. Not the one I expected." Irasir'in smiled, "Perhaps not, but I do prefer to keep an open mind in such things. After all the only way one can learn the truth is to be open to it." The Seeker slowly nodded before taking her leave.

Irasir'in walked the camp silently, the hustle and bustle of every day life there surrounding her. She tried to ignore the bows and murmured prayers from those that noticed her passage. She would no deny them their belief in her since it gave them such hope, but that did not mean she need encourage it. She spied in on Malas and Solas to make sure the girl had actual made it to the lesson. She smiled at the child as she sat looking bored on a log as Solas tried his best to hold her interest in learning the common tongue. She kept going after that, eventually spotting Varric sitting beside his fire. She hadn't spent any time talking to the dwarf before but decided it was time she introduced herself properly. She walked over to his fire and smiled down at him, "Hello there, Varric isn't it? Might I join you?" He grinned, "Well if it isn't the Herald of Andraste herself. Take a seat please, you're always welcome here." Irasir'in sighed, "Just Irasir'in will be fine, thank you mister Varric." The dwarf chuckled, "Trying to be modest? Or do you just not like the title." She smirked, "Something along those lines. Solas tells me that you did not come to Haven of your own will. And refuse to leave of it too." He laughed, "Aye well, there's a good story hidden here. I decided that I wanted to see it through myself. Besides, with the massive hole in the sky it doesn't really matter if I run off or not. It will be hanging over my head either way, and this way I'm actually doing something about it." Irasir'in nodded, "A good way to look at it." There was a pause as the elf realized she didn't really have anything to talk about with the dwarf.

Varric took it upon himself to continue the conversation, "Your daughter is an odd little girl isn't she? Always hiding around the village while watching everyone." Irasir'in smiled, "Yes I suppose she does that doesn't she? It's to be expected, she hasn't walked among humans before after all." Varric looked surprised, "That so? Where did you live before this that you didn't run into humans?" The elf shrugged, "The woods. It was always just the two of us so it wasn't hard to keep us fed off the land, and I always thought it would be safer for us to stay on our own." Varric frowned, "Huh. So what brought you two to the conclave?" She frowned, "Honestly I don't remember myself. I have no memories of the conclave or a few weeks prior to it but... well I think I was looking for something. I have an idea what, but I have no idea why I thought I would find it at the conclave." The dwarf nodded slowly, "I see. Well every story does need a bit of mystery doesn't it?" She smiled, "Aye it does. Among other things." Varric grinned, "And what would you say those things are then? As a story teller myself, I have an interest in what people think makes a good story." Irasir'in thought a moment and held up a finger, "A bit of mystery... and some action. Humanized heroes standing as beyond human beings, add in a grain of truth with a dash of lies. A grand quest to complete and a monstrous enemy that stands in the way. Something that threatens to bring the world crashing down and the story must shatter the listeners perception of life itself." She suddenly smiled, "And there should be a romance to bring it all together."

A/N: And as it always should and will be, please feel free to review. Till next time.


	3. Magic and Blades in the Hinterlands

A/N: This one is a bit shorter than the last two, but that's just how things turned out.

Chapter Two: Magic and Blades in the Hinterlands

Her and Varric were still there discussing what stories needed an hour later when Cassandra saw them on her way to the war room, "Herald! There you are, it seems that Leliana has a lead on a possible ally for the Inquisition." Irasir'in sighed, "I see. Well Varric, it has been a pleasure but duty calls." The dwarf waved her off, "I'll see you later then Irasir'in." An hour later the group was leaving Haven along with a small group of soldiers to act as a guard on their way to find Mother Giselle, Malas watching them leave from the gate out of Haven. The trip took two weeks to finish and by the time they arrived at the Inquisition camp in the Hinterlands Irasir'in was just glad to be off her horse. It may have been faster than walking but that made it no less uncomfortable to have sat in a saddle for so long, and Cassandras pestering to ensure that Irasir'in would not offend the Mother during the meeting did not make it better.

She was almost guiltily happy when they found the village the center of a battlefield for the mages and Templar, a place to work off some of her built up frustration. Before leaving for the Hinterlands she had gotten her hands on a new blade and a mage staff. The fight there was brief but quickly made her wish she was back fighting demons again. The screams of a dying man bothered her more than the death rattle of a demon, and the bright red blood staining the soil left her feeling cold. She kept her meeting with Mother Giselle short and made a note to herself to go speak to the priestess back at Haven. She looked around the refugee camp that had been a battlefield not long ago and sighed heavily, "I suppose this is where we start earning some favor from among the common people then."

Cassandra frowned at her, "Is there something wrong with helping them?" Irasir'in shook her head slowly, "No nothing. I just dislike that we only really came here because we needed something. It feels like we are doing it as an after thought or whim instead of doing it because it is right." The Seeker sighed, "I would have to agree, but we cannot help everyone. We must start by helping ourselves and then worry about others." Irasir'in made a frustrated noise, "You're not wrong but it's hard to agree when so much blood has already been spilled. And it is only just starting." The Seeker didn't answer her, and after talking to the people around the camp Irasir'in made sure that they got people the basic necessities they could spare out of the inquisitorial supplies.

The group moved on to dealing with the Templars and mages in the area after that, removing them as a threat would do far more good for everyone than any supplies the Inquisition passed on. The Templar base was a simple fight, Irasir'in led their soldiers straight to their camp in an old ruined fort and launched a full assault on them. It ended when they killed the local Knight-commander, the loss of this driving force caused the remaining Templars either surrender or flee into the wood. It was the mages proved to be more difficult for many reasons though. The mages were desperate and scared, they had brought children from the circles and many had gone to find their families after escaping. They had brought these loved ones with them to their stronghold in the woods, trying to keep them safe from the Templar. Even with the fall of the local Templar forces only a rare few were willing to lay down their arms and listen to reason, the others believing that the Inquisition was no better than the Templars they had been fighting.

In the end they forced the Inquisition to fight by attacking the Inquisitional camps and ambushing their scouts. Cassandra and Cullens agreed that removing the mages there in the Hinterlands was necessary and the order was given to march on their stronghold. Irasir'in could not say she approved of the decision but understood why it was made, and joined them hoping to mitigate the damage that would be done. In the end there was nothing she could do as the mages fought the Inquisition tooth and nail, using dark and forbidden magics to pull demons from the fade to fight for them. Many of those demons broke lose of their bonds thanks in part to the hasty summoning rituals being performed. Blood and blood magic flowed like water, and when the fighting ended there was nothing but broken bodies and death left behind. Cassandra and the others looked tired, physically and mentally drained by the sheer destruction caused. They decided to set up a temporary camp not far from the mage base, just some where to rest after the horrors they had seen.

The Seeker looked over the camp and frowned when she didn't see Irasir'in among the troops resting there. She asked around and one of the sentries pointed her to the mage base. She found the Herald in the devastation of the base, she was quietly moving bodies into rows off to one side of the enclosed area. Cassandra frowned at her work as she closed the eyes of a child and murmured something quietly over the body before moving onto the next, "Herald? What are you doing?" The elf didn't look up from her work, "I would ask you not to refer to me as the Herald here. It rings hollow when one stands among the bodies of fallen children and shattered families. Especially considering how many of their loved ones fell to my hand today, simply because they refused to see reason." The Seeker was quiet and unsure of how to respond to that. Irasir'in got the next body in line, murmuring to the dead again before moving onto the next. After a few seconds Cassandra silently started to help her. She was close enough to hear Irasir'in this time as she murmured, "May Andraste take you to the Makers side." As they moved to the next body the Seeker spoke softly, "I did not think you were serious before. When you said that you thought there might be a Maker."

Irasir'in face was cold as she answered, "What I believe doesn't really matter right now. When you lay the dead to their rest you do so with words to their god, not your own. It is only right to do so." They were both silent after that, a scout came by looking for them but Cassandra told him to tell the others to wait. That her and the Herald had one last thing do here before they left, and wished to do so in private. The scout looked uncertain but nodded. When the last body they could collect was lined up Irasir'in stood over their bodies and looked them over. She murmured one last prayer to the dead before casting a fire spell and cremating the bodies. They stood in silence watching the fires burn before Irasir'in spoke, "Hahren na melana sahlin; emma ir abelas; souver'inan isala hamin; vehenan him dor'felas; in uthenera na revas. Vir sulahn'nehn; vir dirthera' vir samahl la numin; vir 'lath sa'vunin." Cassandra looked over at her, "What does that mean?" Irasir'in sighed, "It... it might not be appropriate considering the circumstances but... well it's something my people say at funerals for lost loved ones. It means, Eldar your time is come; now I am filled with sorrow; weary eyes need resting; heart has become grey and slow; in waking sleep is freedom. We sing, rejoice; we tell the tales; we laugh and cry; we love one more day." The two of them watched the fire silently before Irasir'in finally turned away, "Come on. We shouldn't hold the troops here any longer."

The trip back to Haven was quiet, not many of them wanted to talk about what had happened at the mages stronghold. Their return to Haven took less time than the trip out, they all just wanted to get back to a safe place where they could work on forgetting it. When Irasir'in saw Malas at the gate she cracked her first smile since the stronghold and hurried her horse forward to see the girl. She handed her horse off to a stable boy with a word of thanks before pulling her daughter into a tight hug. Cassandra smiled softly at the sight before handing off her own horse and heading into Haven on foot. The Seeker returned to her routine the next morning, pausing mid swing when she saw Malas watching her shyly from the tents near by. She went back to her exercise but kept an eye on the girl. When her mother didn't show up by the time she finished her morning exercises Cassandra frowned. It wasn't like her not to be there by then.

She looked at the child hesitantly a moment before heading over, "Good morning Miss Malas." The girl shied away a bit, "Mornin Lady Sandra." The Seeker smiled at that before continuing, "Might I ask where your mother is? I would expect her to be up by now." Malas fidgeted a bit, "She sleepin still." Cassandra frowned, "Odd. She's normally an early riser is she not?" The girl shrugged, "Said she hadn't been sleepin good. Was really tired." Cassandra gave her a stern look, "Well you shouldn't be wandering around without your mother then. Especially if she doesn't know where you are." Malas shrunk back a bit, "B-but... since I'm over here with you... it's fine right? Mama says if I'm ever in trouble and she's not around then I should go see you or mister Solas... so it's fine if I over here with you right?" Cassandra chewed on her lip for a moment, "...I suppose so. Have you eaten breakfast yet?" The girl shook her head silently and the Seeker sighed, "Alright. Why don't we go get you something to eat then?"

When Irasir'in emerged from her cabin her mood was obvious to anyone that looked at her. She was distinctly unhappy. She had always told Malas not to wander off alone and to wake her if the girl woke up before her. She stalked around Haven looking for her daughter, giving only short terse replies to anyone that tried speaking to her. It wasn't until she found Malas finishing eating breakfast with Cassandra that she stopped and took a deep breath. She composed herself, of course Malas had gone to Cassandra. She had latched on to the Seeker for some reason that Irasir'in still hadn't quite figured out. Maybe because she seemed so much like her father? She dismissed that thought and sighed, at least she was safe. She approached the two and Malas smiled when she saw her mother, _"Good morning mama! Did you sleep better tonight? Me and Lady Sandra just finished eating breakfast, she was nice enough to watch me so that you could sleep in!"_ The elf smiled at her softly, _"That's fine Malas, but next time wake me up alright? I was worried when I got up and couldn't find you."_

Malas frowned at that and stoop up, running over to hug her mother, _"Sorry mama."_ She just shook her head, "Thank you Seeker, for watching Malas this morning. It seems that I slept in a bit today." Cassandra nodded, "It's fine Herald. I was a bit surprised to see Malas on her own, but she was well behaved." Irasir'in smiled, "That's good to hear. I hope watching her didn't take you away from your duties this morning." The Seeker shook her head, "It's fine, she just watched me do my morning drills and joined me for breakfast. But now that you mention it, I do have work I need to do today." She pushed herself to her feet, "Have a good day Herald." Irasir'in sighed, "You as well Seeker." She watched Cassandra leave and not for the first time wished people would stop calling her Herald. Her stomach grumbled and pulled her from her thoughts, sending her on the hunt for breakfast instead.

She was going over what Malas had learned of the common language the next day when a servant called her away for a meeting with the war council. She sighed and sent her daughter off to Solas with instructions for her to learn at least ten new words by days end. She went to the war room and all the others were there, discussing their next course of actions over the map and Cassandra looked up as she came in, "Ah herald there you are." Irasir'in suppressed a sigh, "I think that this room is private enough that you can just call me Irasir'in. So what's going on, we have a lead on getting the power we need to close the Breach?" Leliana answered, "We are still working on that..."

Josephine answered on her heels, "In the mean time we have been discussing how to handle the Chantry declaring us heretics. Mother Giselle has given us a list of names of clerics not opposed to our cause, in addition to those against us. I think that you as the Herald should address the clerics and ease some of the concerns. Show people we are not the heretics and madmen the Chantry is trying to make us out to be." Cullen gave her an incredulous look, "You can't be serious. We should be working to close the Breach-" Josephine cut in, "Which we cannot do alone but right now with the Chantry unified against us we cannot approach anyone and they will not approach us. We need to change that and the best way is to talk to the clerics." Leliana frowned, "And are we just going to ignore the danger of this to the herald?" Irasir'in ran a hand through her hair thoughtfully, "It's actually not a bad idea. If we show people that we are willing to be civil it may help change their opinions for the better. At the very least it will make it more difficult for them to paint us in a bad light if we are actively trying to work with the Chantry."

Leliana and Cullen exchanged an unconvinced look while Cassandra stepped up to stand beside Irasir'in, "I will go with her. Ensure her safety while meeting with the clerics. Leliana, use the names that Mother Giselle gave us." Leliana started to protest but the Seeker held up a hand to stop her, "What choice do we have? Josephine is right, we cannot approach anyone right now not with the Clerics standing against us. We have to do this. Use the list and call the Clerics together, once everything is ready we will speak to them." Cullen and Leliana exchanged another look before relenting with a nod and leaving. Cassandra and Irasir'in were the last to leave, the Seeker was looking over the war map while the elf was simply watching the others as they left. "It is the right choice Cassandra. We cannot simply sit here waiting for a solution to our problem with the chantry to come to us." The other woman sighed, "I know. Let us just hope this works." Irasir'in just nodded, "I must go tell Malas that I will be leaving again soon. Let me know when that is so that I can warn her." The Seeker nodded and the elf left without another word.

A/N: And as it always should and will be, please feel free to review. Till next time.


	4. Templars and Clerics

A/N: Am I the only one that feels like these are getting shorter? It is not on purpose I promise, my writing style just has a habit of ending chapters wherever it feels like I need to move on to a new part of the story. Some times it takes fewer words to reach that stopping point. Just to note, I am trying to keep this updated on Friday every week. Some times they might come late, but I will try to stay regular.

Chapter Three Templars and Clerics

The trip to see the Clerics started at the end of that week and would take them a week and a half on it's own. Irasir'in reflected not for the first time on how much more effective travel would be if people feared magic less. Still she understood their stance, people had always been scared of what they couldn't understand after all. Especially when only a rare few could actually use magic. The trip was dull and slow, Cassandra insisted that they bring a handful of soldiers as a guard but Irasir'in had begged off of bring anyone more on a diplomatic trip. She regretted that since Varric had stayed behind and he would have been ideal for passing the time with all of his stories. Half way through their travels Irasir'in found her attentions drifting to the seeker that rode beside her and finally spoke up, "So Cassandra, you're the right hand of the Divine aren't you?"

The woman jumped a bit at the sudden noise, "Oh. Well yes I am. Or at least I was." The elf nodded, "How did you do that?" She frowned, "Do what?" The woman shifted in her saddle, "How did you become the Divines right hand?" Cassandra looked surprised, "You... you mean you don't know?" She cocked her head, "Should I?" The Seeker hurriedly shook her head, "No I suppose not. The Dalish wouldn't really have a reason to talk about it after all..." Irasir'in shrugged, "So how did you do it?" Cassandra sighed, "It's not a story I really like telling. I did my duty and that's all there is to it." Irasir'in smiled at that, "There has to be something more to it if you gained so much of the Divines trust." The Seeker paused, "Well... I suppose so. I saved her life from a cult that tried to assassinate her." The elf nodded, "I see. Yes that would be a good reason to trust someone."

The silence dragged on a bit before Cassandra couldn't help herself, "That's it?" Irasir'in frowned, "Is what it?" She looked at the elf, "Well most people would... ask me to explain. Want to know the story." The elf laughed, "Oh that's what you meant. Do you want to tell me about it?" The Seeker shook her head, "No no, I was just surprised you didn't ask." Irasir'in gave her an amused look, "I assumed that if you wanted to tell me about it you would, otherwise prying would just annoy you." Cassandra went to respond and stopped a moment, "Well... yes. Thank you then." The elf nodded serenely and they kept going for a time before Cassandra broke the silence again, "So Her- Irasir'in. It occurs to me that... well I don't really know anything about you." The elf looked over at her with a smile, "I suppose you don't do you?" There was a pause where the Seeker fidgeted a bit before Irasir'in decided to save her from it, "Was there something in particular you wanted to know about me?" The woman cleared her throat, "Yes well... where are you from?"

The elf cocked her head as she considered how to answer the question, "Orlais. I grew up in the region of the Dales." Cassandra frowned, "That's a bit... vague." Irasir'in sighed, "I am sorry, but I am bound by oaths not to speak of where I came from exactly. I may not... agree with all their views but I will respect my clans wishes to remain hidden from the rest of the world." Cassandra nodded slowly, "I see. Oaths and duties are things I can understand perfectly. Do you miss your home though? Your clan?" Irasir'in snorted, "I cannot say I do or that they miss me." She looked at her in surprise, "That is... unexpected. I thought the Dalish were a close knit people." Irasir'in hesitated thinking for a moment before slowly answering, "First I wouldn't call myself a Dalish. I'm... something else. Second... I didn't leave of my own choice." Cassandra studied her seriously, "What made you leave then?" Irasir'in sighed, "I didn't really leave. I was cast out as an exile." The Seeker watched her intently but Irasir'in didn't say more. The elfs face had fallen and the smile she had had was forgotten now. Cassandra decided not to pry further into Irasir'in business. At least for now.

Their arrival in Val Royeaux was quiet for the most part. They kept their heads down when they arrived late in the evening and found an inn on the edge of town to spend the night at. They were due to meet with the Revered Mothers the next morning so Cassandra thought it was best that they kept their presence quiet till then. The night was quiet as well but the peace was broken the next morning when Lelianas scout reported that while the Revered Mothers were gathered as asked, but they had come with an army of Templar and the people of the city thought the warriors were there to protect them from the inquisition. When they arrived at the square where the Templar and Clerics had gathered there was quite the crowd listening to one of the mothers give a speech. Irasir'in calmly kept moving to the front of the crowd, Cassandra hurrying after her as the crowd tried to separate them. The Revered Mother giving the speech saw them and called out over the crowd, "Behold the so-called Herald of Andraste! Claiming to rise where our beloved fell! We say this is a false prophet! The Maker would send no elf in our hour of need!"

The crowd parted around Irasir'in and Cassandra as they were singled out, and the focus turned on them. Irasir'in did not shrink from their stares, instead holding her head tall, "I made no claim to be a herald of anything! And what others say I am does not matter in the face of the Breach! Every day it remains more and more rifts open in the world and release demons upon us! The Inquisition stands against those demons, fights to protect the world from the rifts and the Breach itself while you stand here making speeches! I do not ask that you call me by ANY title, instead I call to you, beseech you, to listen to reason and help us STOP this madness born of the fade before it is too late!" Sound of armor clanking signaled the coming of the Templar troops and the Revered Mothers face read of victory, "It is already too late! The Templars have returned to the Chantry! They will face this 'Inquisition' and the people will be safe once more!" Irasir'in watched the stride of the warriors and how they carried themselves, how their leader looked at the Cleric before speaking softly to Cassandra, "This is already over." The Seeker began to ask her what she meant when one of the Templar taking the stage stepped up to the Revered Mother and backhanded her to the ground. The crowd backed away from the Templars, now unsure and scared. Their leader began speaking to the Templar soldiers standing on the stage without looking at the now humiliated woman and Irasir'in eyes narrowed, "Something is off here Seeker and I do not simply mean that act of violence..."

Cassandra ignored her as the she moved to intercept the man that was now leaving the stage, "Lord Seeker Lucius, it's imperative that we speak-" The man, Lucius, turned his head away from her, "You will not address me." Cassandra slowly came to a stop, "Lord Seeker?" He turned and gave a glare of disgust to the both of them, "Creating a heretical movement, raising up a puppet as Andraste's prophet. You should be ashamed. You should all be ashamed! The Templar failed no one when they left the Chantry to purge the mages! You are the ones who have failed! You who'd leash our righteous sword with doubts and fear! If you came to appeal to the Chantry, you are too late. The only destiny here that demands respect is MINE!"

Irasir'in put a hand on Cassandras shoulder and stepped forward, "I care about one thing and one thing alone. Closing the Breach. Anything else is moot if we do not stop the demons from consuming our world! I do not ask that you follow, I do not ask that you cast aside your faith or your wants, I only ask that you help us finally close the Breach so that we might all be saved!" The Lord Seeker sneered, "The Breach is indeed a threat. But you certainly have no power to do anything about it." One of the Templars started to protest but Irasir'in didn't listen anymore as she turned away setting a hand on Cassandras shoulder, "He's too far gone. Words are wasted on him now, let's deal with the mess instead."

The Seeker followed after her a bit reluctantly and watched as the Lord Seeker declared the people unworthy of his protection and left. She looked at Irasir'in, "I don't understand. Lord Seeker Lucius has always been a decent man, never given to this sort of grandstanding and ambition. This is... bizarre." The elf paused and looked back, "Do you think we will be able to reason with him?" Cassandra seriously considered the question, "I hope so. If not him, then there must be others in the order that will not feel the same. Either way we should return to Haven and inform the others." Irasir'in studied her before nodding, "One thing first." She walked over to the Revered Mother who still sat shocked on the stage, she held her hand out to the Cleric, "Are you alright Revered Mother?"

She looked at the elf's hand a moment, "...We have been shown up by our own Templars and my fellow clerics have scattered to the wind, along with their convictions. With that victory you still offer me your hand?" The woman sighed, "Just tell me one thing; do you truly believe you are the Maker's chosen?" Irasir'in gave her a serious look, "I think that people believe that is what I am. Whether or not it's true is not for me to say, but what I can say is true is that I and the Inquisition are only here to help. Nothing more and nothing less." She looked down a moment before answering softly, "I suppose that is all that really matters isn't it? I will pray that what you say is true then. Now please, leave me to my shame." Irasir'in studied her a moment before nodding, "Be well Revered Mother." The elf hopped off of the small platform and left, trying to ignore the various eyes watching her.

She did take an interest in one pair of those eyes when it shot an arrow into the bushes near by. Cassandra jumped at the arrow and her hand went to her weapon immediately while pushing Irasir'in behind her, "Where did that come from?" The elf looked over at the arrow and the paper tied to it, "I don't think it really matters, it wasn't meant to harm me but instead it was to send a message" She plucked the arrow out of the bushes and showed the letter to Cassandra, "Literally." The Seeker frowned at that, "That is an odd way to send a message." Irasir'in shrugged as she read the letter, "Well. It would seem we have a friend in odd places. Let's go see what kind of person sends letters by arrow shall we?"

It was starting to get dark out when they finally found the end of the bread trail that their new ally had left and they had met the odd elf. Seras reaction to Irasir'in being an elf threw her off a bit but she wasn't going to let it bother her when they needed allies. Cassandra was less than pleased with the idea of letting Sera into the Inquisition but Irasir'in insisted. After all, they needed every person they could get if they wanted the Inquisition to grow. When both the rebel mages and Enchanter Viviennes servant came asking for her attention as they were preparing to leave, the elf frowned at the timing. Once was coincidence, twice was a trend. Why were people suddenly lining up to join? Surely the failing of the chantry wouldn't spark this much support for them.

She was mulling it over on the way to see the Enchanter when Cassandra spoke up, "Be cautious when meeting the Enchanter. She is not our enemy, but she is ambitious. Whatever reason she has to support us will be as much about personal power as anything else." Irasir'in answer had just a hint of bitterness, "Of course it will be. Even with the sky torn asunder and our world falling apart, people still must concern themselves with their own wants first and foremost." The Seeker frowned, "That is less than charitable Herald." The elf sighed, "You're right. I apologize, I am already letting the politics irk me and I have yet to actually speak with a noble." She shook her head and gave Cassandra a thin smile, "I will make sure to behave myself in front of the Enchanter herself and that I leave her with the best impression I can."

A/N: And as it always should and will be, please feel free to review. Till next time.


	5. Snow Upon the Fields

A/N: Once again Elvhen is italics because translating that much would be a pain, and this time there is a couple songs in here. The songs are from the Dragon Age series itself directly so those belong to Bioware. And EA. And stuff. You may see me put things like that in from time to time, it's just a thing.

Chapter 4 Snow Upon the Fields

Irasir'in sat watching Malas play with a quiet smile. She had been gone for nearly a month so she had slipped away from the war room to take the girl out into the woods so that they could spend time together. Malas had spent well over an hour telling her about what she had done around Haven while Irasir'in was at Val Royeaux, she had made her lessons with Solas sound exciting but Irasir'in was fairly certain she had been exaggerating a bit to make her feel better about being gone.

After a couple hours more of chattering away about anything and everything Malas was humming happily while making snowmen as it started to snow again. After awhile she asked, _"Mama do you like Miss Cassandra?"_ Irasir'in cocked her head, _"What?"_ Malas looked at her, _"Do you like Miss Cassandra? Cause I like her, she's so awesome! Mister Varric has been telling me aaaall these stories about her! Did you know she fought an army of dragons?"_

The elf got a thoughtful look, _"That so? Would think she would mention that..."_ Her daughter bounced a bit as she nodded enthusiastically, _"She saved the Divine from them! It's so cool! There were dragons and evil mages and plooots and and and stuff!"_ Irasir'in laughed, _"That does sound awesome."_ There was a crunching sound as someone approached through the snow and Irra looked back to see a servant looking around, _"Looks like the others might want me back at Haven."_

Malas pouted, " _Noooo they can't have you yet!"_ The elf's eyes suddenly glittered, _"They can't?"_ The girl shook her head, _"Right. Then let's run."_ Malas's eyes widened and she grinned, _"Really?"_ Irasir'in nodded, _"Really."_ She heard the servant call for her _"Come on, let's go!"_ , Malas giggled at the two elves took off running, she heard the servant call after them but not many people could keep up with the pair in the woods. A dalish probably, but certainly not one of the servants from Haven.

When they came to a stop deep in the woods the two elves collapsed in the snow laughing, Malas pouncing on her mother, _"We did it! We got away! No more meetings and Heralds, only mama!"_ Irasir'in laughed and tickled the girl, _"Only mama and Malas!"_ Snow began to fall harder but Irra wasn't too worried about it. They played together in the woods more, hide and seek, building another snowman together to make up for the loss of the last one, throwing snowballs at each other... Irasir'in was so focused on spending time with her daughter she missed the starts of the snow storm. It wasn't until it got bad enough to worry her that she noticed. She frowned a moment as she realized they had run for almost an hour to get where they were, _"Come on Malas. We should find some where to take shelter."_ The girl groaned, _"Can't we play just a bit longer?"_

Irasir'in smiled softly, _"Sorry love. We have to find shelter before the storm gets too bad. Come on."_ The girl sighed, _"Yes mama."_ Irra trudged through the snow, creating a path through the snow for Malas to follow in behind her as she moved. The storm was getting worse and worse, making Irasir'in worry until they found the cave mouth. She had missed it, it was just a darker spot against the stone with the snow piled in front of it but Malas had pulled at her coat tail and pointed it out. She got the girl inside before going back out into the storm just long enough to collect enough wood for a fire. She had cut branches straight off of the trees in places but that worked fine since her magic could get it burning pretty easy if it was green or wet.

She piled the wood off to one side and looked around the cave, realizing that it ran much deeper than she thought. And that it wasn't a cave, but rather a mining complex. She would have to ask the others about it later, but right then she needed to get the fire going before Malas got too cold. She set up a small fire and used some extra brace beams left near the entrance as logs. They were large but with the proper application of power cutting them was do able. Once the fire was going they sat together beside it and watched the storm begin to rage outside.

Cassandra had left Haven when the snow started coming down and after the servant had reported that she had lost Irasir'in in the forest. She didn't know what the woman was thinking running off on her own with Malas like that, but with the storm in full swing she knew she had to find them. Her every step took her further and further from the safety and shelter of the village, but she couldn't turn back without the two of them.

She had brought a pack with her to make sure they would have what they needed should they get stuck in the storm, but now she was wondering if she would be able to find them at all. They could be any where in the mountains. The wind howled and the snow fell in sheets to blind her. The Seeker trudged and wondered at this elf that had fallen into the lap of inquisition just when they need her most.

Was it coincidence or fate? Perhaps it was divine mandate but in that moment she had difficulty seeing the Maker having sent them a woman that would run from a simple meeting to save them all. Irasir'in. The strange elf with the exotic tattoos and odd eyes... she was an oddity, a mage that insisted on carrying a sword and on wearing armor like a warrior. Where had she come from?

So many questions surrounded her and yet there were no answers to go with them. She rarely talked about herself, if she did at all. The Seeker stopped and looked around, if they had passed through here the snow had covered up the tracks. She sighed heavily and wondered if she could even find her own back now. She pushed forward just a bit further, she was this far out already so she must be close by now. They couldn't have gone too far past here... She was thinking of turning back again when she found the snowman.

Irasir'in watched the storm and hummed to Malas quietly. All the running around had left the girl tired and it wasn't long after they had stopped that she had fallen asleep. The elf knew her daughter had to be hungry but they both knew she would have to wait to eat till tomorrow. It wasn't the first time that she has had to so they were both far more use to it then Irasir'in would have liked. She saw movement through the snow and frowned at it.

Who was all the way out here in a storm like this? She woke Malas with a gentle shake and placed a finger over the girls mouth to hush her before the questions came. This was another thing that Malas knew far too well for someone so young. The girl quietly got up and moved further to the back of the cave while Irasir'in took up a position at the front with her dagger. Footstep approached and a familiar voice called into the cave, "Herald is that you in there?"

There was a happy noise from the back of the cave as Malas suddenly ran to the Seeker even as her mother tried to heel her in with caution. The little girl thumped into the waist of the surprised warrior, "Lady Sandra! You came out to see us!" Cassandra blinked down at her and looked up to see an amused but tired looking Irasir'in standing at the mouth of the cave, "Malas, let Cassandra go so that she came come in out of the storm properly." The girl smiled up at the Seeker brightly and grabbed her hand, "Come on in Lady Sandra, mama made a nice warm fire already." Cassandra went to say something but a cold wind slipping down her back with a flurry of snow made her shiver and decide that fire was a good idea.

The three of them around the fire and munched on the supplies the Seeker had brought with her, Irasir'in looking serene and Malas smiling happily. Cassandra spoke carefully, "So Herald, how were you planning on getting back to Haven if the storm didn't stop?" She reached into a pouch and pulled out a water proof map, "I was going to use this, cast a spell to find north, and then walk back in the morning once we were rested. I would have done so tonight, but we've had a long day so I thought we should rest before going on a two hour hike." She gave Irasir'in a flat look, "And you thought this was a good idea?" The elf shrugged, "I think it's the only one I have. And one I believe you are now stuck in following as well."

She scowled in answer but Irasir'in raised her hand, "Peace Seeker. I know it's not the best plan but I wasn't expecting a storm to roll in today. I didn't even notice it until it was already getting too bad to do anything but find shelter and hope it passed before we had to head back." Cassandra blew out a frustrated noise and sat across the fire with her arms crossed grumpily. After awhile Malas pulled on her mothers sleeve, "Mama will you sing for me?" She smiled, "Sure. What do you want me to sing?" She thought for a bit before, "I am the One."

Irasir'in sighed, "Again huh. Would you not prefer something more cheerful?" Malas shook her head, "I like how you sing of the dark. You make it seem brighter." She thought a moment before nodding, "Alright love. If that is what you want." She started to sing in elven before Malas spoke up, "Can it not be in elven this time?" Irasir'inpaused before she nodded, "Sure." She hummed a few bars to get the tune and Cassandra turned her head slightly, she recognized that tune. The elf closed her eyes and sang,

"I feel sun through the ashes in the sky.

Where's the one who'll guide into the night?  
What's begun is the war that will

Force this divide

What's to come

Is fire and the end of time.

I am the one who can recount

What we've lost.

I am the one

Who will live on.

I have run through the fields

Of pain and sighs.

I have fought

To see the other side.

I am the one who can recount

What we've lost.

I am the one

Who will live on."

Malas listened to the soft song come to an end and smiled at her mother with a tired look. Cassandra finished humming the tune that Irasir'in sang and stopped a bit embarrassed when she realized she had been doing it. Irasir'in followed it up with another soft tune this time in elven and was meant only for the girl.

Elgara vallas, da'len; Melava somniar

Mala tara aravas; Ara ma'densen melar

Iras ma ghilas, da'len; Ara ma'nedan ashir

Dirthara lothlenan'as; Bal emma mala dir

Tel'enfenim, da'len; Irassel ma ghilas

Ma garas mir renan ; Ara ma'athlan vhenas

Ara ma'athlan vhenas

By the time she finished the lullaby Malas was fast asleep on her lap. Irasir'in stroked the girls hair slowly and smiled softly at her; Cassandra watched them for awhile before asking quietly, "What did it mean?" Irasir'in looked up, "Hmm?" The Seeker shifted, "The song. What did it mean?" The elf sighed, "It's an old lullaby." Cassandra waited expectantly and the elf slowly smiled, "Did you want me to sing you a lullaby too Lady Pentaghast?"

The other woman sighed, "Do you have to make this difficult?" Irasir'in laughed softly, "So it would seem, though I do not think I have been so difficult as to cause you trouble." Cassandra gave her a dry look, "You say after dragging me all the way out here." She shook her head, "Sorry. It has been a few years since I had anyone to worry after me other than Malas and did not think anyone would miss me being gone for awhile. Well... I do not feel like going through the lullaby again, so how about this. Instead you get one answer."

Cassandra frowned, "What?" The elf shrugged, "Obviously I caused you trouble, and if not for me you would be back at Haven in a warm bed. So you can ask me a question and I will answer it. No lies or anything." The Seeker studied her, "Have you been lying about yourself in the first place?" Irasir'in laughed, "You want that to be your free answer? I have not lied to you at all, but I may have spun a few tales for Varric when he got too nosy." Cassandra shook her head at that but didn't say anything, thinking for a few moments instead. The elf watched her intently as the other woman considered the question she would ask, "Where are you really from?" Irasir'in sighed, "Straight for a big one eh? Alright... the Arbor Wilds."

Cassandra frowned, "Impossible. No one lives there." The elf smiled a sad smile, "No someone lives there alright. They just are not very friendly." The Seeker studied her, "You said you were exiled. Why?" The elf snorted, "I said one answer... but since I answered the first I might as well answer the second." She sighed heavily, " Two reasons. First because I fell in love with an outsider, and second I had a child with him." Cassandra frowned, "And that got you exiled?" Irasir'in nodded and her mind drifted to a painful memory, "I was exiled and he was executed. I only live because my father is... sentimental. Most said too much so."

The silence that followed was Cassandra starring at Irasir'in while the elf starred into the fire without seeing it. "I am sorry I asked. I did not mean to bring up unpleasant memories." She sighed, "It's fine. We should try to get some sleep, even if the storm is gone by morning, it will be a long trek through cold snow to get back to Haven. Cassandra nodded silently as the Elf shifted the sleeping Malas so that they could both be comfortable next to the fire. The look on her face made the Seeker think that she wasn't really going to be doing much sleeping that night.

The next day started with a gray morning, but at least the storm had passed. Malas picked up on her

mothers dour mood and was quiet too. When they ate a cold breakfast Irasir'in lead the way out, once they were outside she lifted Malas onto her shoulders and they trudged through the snow like that. Cassandra followed a few paces behind watching the two elves as they walked. Malas started chattering away in Elven and it wasn't long before Irasir'in started to smile again as they started talking. The human slowly started to feel isolated from the pair, like she was spying in on a family moment she had no business looking in on. She lagged behind more and more until she saw the girl look back and whisper to her mother.

The elf stopped to let her daughter down, Malas running back to the Seeker with a smile, "Come on Lady Sandra! You're bein too slow!" She grabbed the woman's hand and pulled her up to join her and her mother, Irasir'in's eyes glittering with amusement, "She is worried you will get lost in the snow if you do not keep up Cassandra." The Seeker smiled a bit, "Well thank you Malas. I am sure that if I am up here with you two, I will not get lost." The girl nodded sagely, "You won't be. Mama can never get lost, she always knows where to go." The two woman chuckled at that and pushed on through the fresh powder with the girl staying latched onto Cassandras hand to make sure she didn't get lost.

The walk back was a more cheerful affair after that, Malas told the two everything she had planned for that day and they could only smile at her. After awhile Irasir'in sighed, "I just recalled, I missed a meeting yesterday. What was it about?" Cassandra rolled her eyes, "We were discussing our next move now that the Chantry has become divided. The Templars have pulled back from the world, and Josephine thinks it would be better to go to the mages than to take a risk on Lord Seeker Lucius." The elf cocked her head to the side, "You disagree?" The Seeker sighed, "I think it would be foolish to discount the Templars when it could well have been the mages that caused the explosion at the Conclave." Irasir'in thought for a few moments, "It is possible. But the Templar are less likely to be supportive of our cause I think."

Cassandra frowned, "Why do you think that?" The elf glanced over at her, "A few reasons. First is their little display at Val Royeaux. It was a very dramatic and public way of not only denying the Chantry their support but also going so far as to insult them. If that is how they wish to act to those that are friendly to them and can be called their allies, I am concerned on how they would react to us whom they view as hostiles. Second, they way the Lord Seeker spoke. He said the Revered Mother was 'beneath them' and that the city was 'unworthy of their protection'. He treated anyone that was not a Templar as scum and then dismissed the protest of the -single- Templar that spoke out against the behavior with a wave of the hand."

The elf shook her head, "The majority clearly supported the Lord Seeker. And third, and this is important, how readily they left the Chantry in the first place. The Divine herself called for the fighting to end and yet the Templar left the Chantry to fight the mages with very little hesitation. I apologize but if someone abandons their allies and ignores the words of their Divine over simple hate... I question where their priorities lay." Cassandra glowered a bit that, "There has to be some Templars that have retained their sense. They cannot all have fallen in with the Lord Seeker and whatever madness has taken him over. Besides, we cannot know that the mages would be any safer. They must be desperate after the destruction of the conclave and are short on allies. We do not know if they were involved in the explosion and who knows what has slipped into their ranks now that they are not regulated by the circles."

Irasir'in considered that seriously for a few moments, "Do you think that mages need to be in the circle?" The Seeker frowned, "I.. am not sure any longer. There were abuses and it is clear that they failed both us and the mages but... where else could mages go to learn control? Where they can be safe from demons?" The elf sighed, "I have heard that argument before from Enchanter Vivienne. I think there are better solutions to the problem than locking the mages away and telling them that their gifts are dangerous to everyone and themselves. All I even know about the circles are what I have been told, I have never stepped into one in my life. Mages do need training to be kept safe from a great many things, but perhaps locking them away with an armed guard is the wrong way. I was trained by my father and clan for example and I think you can agree that I am fine."

Cassandra studied her a moment, "Perhaps. I think that solving that problem is a long way off." Irasir'in shrugged, "Regardless, the mages are actively reaching out to us where as the Templars are avoiding us. I would say that if nothing else, it cannot hurt to speak with them. Besides I will be safe enough so long as you are there to protect me will you not?" The Seeker glanced at her, "This is not a joke." The elf raised an eyebrow, "Who says I was joking?" Cassandra didn't answer as Haven came back into sight, "Anyway, I am not going to be picky about allies out of paranoia. Until we find evidence of some sort point to who exactly caused the explosion I have no intention to blame anyone for it."

The Seeker sighed, "At least think on it before making a decision. In the mean time, there is another matter that has come to my attention. We had a mercenary, one Iron Bull along with his company the Chargers, contact us. It seems that he wishes to speak to you about joining up with the Inquisition and wants to do it in person." Irasir'in frowned, "That is... odd. Where does he want to meet?" They could hear it as the Inquisition guards called out to the rest of the village that the herald had returned alive and she could see people moving about, making their way out through the fresh snow to the trio, "He wishes to meet at the Storm Coast." Irasir'in sighed, she knew that she would get an earful from the other leaders of the Inquisition before the day was out, "Well then I suppose we should go meet him before he gets bored and moves on. We can use every blade after all."

A/N: And as it always should and will be, please feel free to review. Till next time.


	6. Redcliffe

A/N: Sorry for posting later than I promised but I am actually posting from my phone right now. Why is this you ask? Because my internet has been down since Thursday last week. So that's fun. I was hoping that they would have fixed it by now, but no such luck. So here I am posting from a cellphone. Fun. Anyway read, enjoy, review, and all that fun stuff.

Chapter Five Redcliffe

Irasir'in rubbed her eyes as her horse trotted along. The Hinterlands weren't her favorite place to visit, not after the bloodshed that had filled the hills here. They had stopped the night before so that they arrived at Redcliffe in the day light, but the Fade was troubled here still. Her night had been tiring as she fended off both nightmares and demons throughout it. The rest of her companions had slept well because of this however, she had acted like a beacon for such dark things and they had been left alone. Cassandra was frowning at her and had been doing so for the last hour.

Finally the Seeker spoke, "Are you alright Herald? You seem tired." The elf gave her a sour look, "What are you talking about Seeker? Clearly this is the look of the well-rested." Cassandra gave her a flat look and Irasir'in sighed, "Sorry. Yes I am tired, the vale is thin and the Fade is in turmoil still. It was unfortunately not that long ago that this was a place of all-out war and death. The spirits are restless and it made sleep… less than restful for me." The Seekers look softened, "I see. I am sorry to hear that. Perhaps you will feel better once we have gotten to Redcliffe."

An hour later they dismounted as their forward scouts knelt with bows drawn watching a rift sitting in front of the gates to Redcliffe. Irasir'in started working the kinks out of her joints, stretching wide and slow, "That's an open rift with no demons." Cassandra walked over to the scouts, "Report." One of them, scout Harding if the elf remember right, answered, "We spotted the rift an hour ago. No demons or people have entered or left the area of the rift in that time, and there have been no changes to the rift either. It's just… there." The Seeker frowned and Irasir'in walked forward, "Well standing here and starring at it won't help. Let's get the soldiers and go take care of it."

Cassandra shook her head, "I do not trust it. This smells like a trap." The elf shook her head, "If it is then it is one we need to spring. We could go around it to find another way inside, but that would take time and we would still need to eventually take out the rift. So instead we take it out now. The guards from Redcliffe can see us from the walls there, so it will be a good way to show them that we can close rifts. Give them proof of our intentions as well." The Seeker didn't look happy but finally sighed, "Fine. But you will go in last." Irasir'in considered that a moment, "I will not go in front but I will go in with the soldiers. This is the time for first impressions, I will not be seen as a coward hiding behind her warriors." Cassandra frowned again but didn't disagree.

The elf walked behind the line of soldiers cautiously. They were all waiting for everything to go wrong, but so far they were left in suspense. Cassandra moved at her side, the Seeker had insisted on staying close. Irasir'in wasn't complaining though, having the warrior woman beside her was comforting. The quiet was oppressive, the only noise was the quiet clinking of metal and shift of chainmail as they stalked forward. She felt a chill run up her spin and turn slightly, eyes widening as a demon leapt from the earth behind them. She shoved Cassandra out of the way as the demon screamed in wordless rage and attacked. The elf barely moved in time to keep herself from losing a limb, instead hissing in pain as it took skin from her arm.

The Seeker stumbled to the side and regained her footing, spinning to attack the demon as it pulled back for another attack. It screeched and swiped at her, her shield blocking the blow solidly. She could hear the others fighting but pushed it from her mind as the demon swung again and left scratches across the surface of her shield. She struck back at the beasts legs, sending it off balance. She drew back for another blow when a bolt of lightning knocked the demon off its feet. She glanced at the elf mage who was already moving to the rift. The Seeker smashed the demon again, making sure it wouldn't get back up before following Irasir'in. The mage was engaged with another demon already, dodging the blow of a burning rage demon to drive her blade into its hide. Cassandra slammed her shield into the rage demon, sending it staggering so that Irasir'in could hit it with an ice spell. The beast roared in pain and hate before Cassandra took its head from its shoulders.

The elf lifted her hand and tendrils of power whipped out to grab hold of the rift. She snarled as the power burned in her hand and the demons turned their attention to her. The Seeker put herself between the elf and the Fade beasts, keeping them away from her while she sealed the rift. The fighting was intense if brief before the rift finally sealed, the demons staggering as they lost their source of power. The fight was easier after that and the inquisitions experience fighting demons paying off as they put down the last of them. They panted as they started looking to the wounded and the dead. Irasir'in pulled out bandages as they got to work patching up those they could.

Cassandra frowned at her and gently took her shoulder, "You are wounded." The elf glanced her bloody arm, "I am not about to bleed to death from that. We will handle those hurt worse and worry about my own after." The Seeker grunted and let her get back to it. Once the others were taken care of Cassandra took her arm and sat her down to look at the wound. Irasir'in just sighed and let her do it. She cleaned the wound with water from a canteen and gave it a serious inspection before taking bandages and wrapping it up with gentle but firm hands, "The wound is shallow. It will heal well I think." The elf nodded, "It will be fine. It likely will not even scar."

Once the wound was bound the Seeker let the elf stand again, she looked over the group. They had lost two soldiers to the initial ambush and a few of the wounds were serious but otherwise they had faired well. The gates to the city opened and the city guards emerged with a healer in tow. The healer set to those with the worst wounds and Irasir'in left them and the majority of the inquisition soldiers to watch over the wounded alongside the guards from the city as the rest of them went into the city. They met with an Inquisition scout as they got inside, the scout bowing to her as she approached, "Herald. We spread word that the inquisition was coming but you should know that no one was expecting us." She frowned, "The grand enchanter requested us herself though…" The scout gave her a helpless look, "If she did then she has told no one. We have arranged for you to use the tavern for the negotiations."

A mage hurried over, "Agents of the Inquisition, my apologies. Magister Alexius is in charge now but he has not yet arrived. He is expected shortly…" His voice trailed off at the look on Irasir'in's scowl at the title of magister before continuing a bit hesitantly, "But uh… you can speak with the former grand enchanter in the meantime." She nodded a bit sharply, "Very well. Thank you." She stalked off and Cassandra walked quicker, "Herald are you alright?" She glanced back and stopped before taking a deep breath, "Yes fine. I simply… have had less than pleasant experiences with Tevinter in the past. Especially their Magisters." The Seeker nodded slowly before they kept going. Irasir'in was focused, ignoring the market and looks they were getting along the way to the tavern.

The grand enchanter was waiting for them in the tavern and frowned a bit before smoothing out her features and spoke to them, "Greetings agents of the Inquisition. What has brought you to Redcliffe?" Irasir'in glanced at the others, "We are here due to your own invitation. We spoke at Val Royeaux." Her frown returned, "You must be mistaken. I have not been to Val Royeaux since before the conclave." The elf frowned in return, "Someone that looked just like you spoke to us and requested my presence." The grand enchantress looked down a moment thinking before looking back at the other elf, "Like me…. I suppose it could be magic at work, but why would anyone…? Whoever or whatever brought you here, the situation has changed. The free mages have already… pledged themselves to the service of Tevinter Imperium."

Cassandra looked at her in shock, "An alliance with Tevinter? Are you not afraid of all of Thados turning against you?" The grand enchantress shook her head, "As one indentured to a magister, I no longer have the authority to negotiate." Irasir'ins look darkened and the mages exchanged worried looks, "You have made a grave and desperate mistake Grand Enchantress Fiona. One you will regret sooner rather than later." The enchanter shook her head, "All hopes of peace died with Justina. This… bargain with Tevinter would not be my first choice, but it was my only one. We are losing this war-" Irasir'in interrupted her, "Then you should have died with your freedom and honor intact. It is better to die free than live as a slave." The grand enchantress scowled at that, but any response she had was interrupted by the door to the Tavern opening and closing.

A man in Tevinter Magister robes spoke as he walked to stand before Irasir'in, "Welcome my friends, I apologize for not greeting you earlier." The enchantress took a deep breath and smooth over her angry look, introducing the man, "Agents of the Inquisition, allow me to introduce Magister Gereon Alexius." The magister looked over them, "The southern mages are under my command. And you are the survivor, yes? The one from the Fade? Interesting." Irasir'in gave him a haunty look before speaking shortly, "I am here to acquire mages to seal the breach." The magister nodded, "Right to business? I understand, of course." He gestured for them to sit and spoke to another man, "Felix would you send for a scribe please? Ah pardon my manners. My son Felix, friends." Irasir'ins eye twitched at the word friends but she nodded to the young man. The magister continued, "I am not surprised you are here. Containing the breach is not a feat that many could even attempt. There is no telling how many mages would be needed for such an endeavor. Ambitious, indeed." The elf gave him an unreadable look, "And I will take all the mages I can." The magister nodded, "There will have be-"

The magisters attention was taken from their conversation to the unsteady return of his son. The young man staggered and Irasir'ins good nature got the better of her obvious dislike for the Tevinter as she quickly caught him. The magister reached out looking concerned, "Felix!" The boy took a deep breath, "I am sorry my lord." Alexius shook his head, "Are you all right?" The young man nodded, "I am fine, father." Alexius nodded, "Come, I'll get your powders. Please excuse me, friends. We will have to continue this another time. Fiona I require your assistance back at the castle." Felix limped a bit after him, "I am sorry for the trouble everyone." The magister paused and turned back, "I shall send word to the Inquisition. We will conclude this business at a later date." The elf watched them leave, listening to the door shut before checking her hand and reading the note there silently. Cassandra stepped forward, "What is it?" The elf crumpled up the note and wisps of smoke emerged from her hand as she burned it, "I do not know. But I suppose I will have to find out."

When Irasir'in entered the Chantry, the last thing she expected to see was a man in Tevinter dress fighting demons. She paused just a moment before drawing her blade and charging to take the head off of a shade. He grinned cockily at her, "You're finally here? Good, then you can help me close this thing." She gave him a cool look and turned her attention back to the rift and the demons emerging from it. The fight was brief and furious, rage demons and shades falling under blade and spell. It was odd though, the space around the rift shifted constantly. She watched a Shade moving in slow motion once, a rage demon that moved so fast through another spot that she could not keep up. It was disorienting but she handled it anyway.

The rift had been weaker than the others, a small and weak thing in comparison to the others she had had to deal with. She spun her blade away and turned a suspicious eye to the Tevinter as he studied the area where the rift had been, speaking as he did so, "Fascinating. How does that work, exactly?" He chuckled, "You don't even know do you. Just wiggle your fingers-" She interrupted him, "How are you?" He paused and cleared his throat, "Getting ahead of myself. Dorian of house Pavus, most recently of Minrathous. How do you do?" The elf just crossed her arms. The man continued, "Magister Alexius was once my mentor, so my assistance should be valuable- as I'm sure you can imagine." She gave him a flat note, "I was expecting the boy, Felix." Dorian waved a hand, "I'm sure he's on his way. He was to give you the note, then meet us here after ditching his father." She snorted, "I take it you sent the note then."

He nodded, "I did. Someone had to warn you after all. There is dang-" She gave him a flat look, "Of course there is danger. There is are Tevinter here. A magister no less. Nothing good could come of that." He gave her a flat look, "You dislike the Imperium I take it." She returned his flat look in answer. He sighed, "Regardless of what you think, what you need to know is that Alexius is playing with time magic. He used it to get to the mages before you." The elf gave him an incredulous look, "Time magic?" The man began to pace, "You saw it yourself, time around the rift was in flux. Slowing, quickening, the magic is wildly unstable. Soon there will be more like it spreading farther and farther out, until it engulfs the world." Irasir'in studied him thinking hard before, "How do you know about it?" The mage crossed his arms, "I helped him work on it when I was his apprentice. It was just a theory back then, Alexius could never get it to work. What I don't understand is why he is doing, tearing time to shreds just to get a few hundred lackeys?" The elfs ears perked and she turned as she heard the chantry doors open as Felix entered.

He answered the question calmly, "He didn't do it for them." Dorian nodded to him, "Took you long enough. Is he starting to get suspicious?" Felix shook his head, "No but I shouldn't have played the illness card. I thought he would be fussing over me all day. My father has joined a cult, Tevinter Supremacists." Irasir'ins look said more on her thoughts of that than any words could. He continued, "They call themselves the Venatori. And I can tell you one thing. Whatever he has done for them, he has done it to get to you." The elfs look darkened further, "Why would he rearrange time AND take over the mage rebellion coming after me?" Felix sighed, "They're obsessed with you, but I don't know why. Perhaps because you survived the temple of sacred ashes." Dorian spoke up again, "You can close the rifts; maybe there's a connection, or they see you as a threat." Felix frowned, "If the Venatori are behind the rifts, or even the breach in the sky, then they are worse than I thought."

The elf mage slowly rubbed her tattooed cheek, "Alexius is your father. Why would you work against him?" Felix shook his head, "For the same reason Dorian does. I love my father, and my country, but all this? The cults, the time magic? What he's doing is madness. For his own sake you have to stop him." Dorian added in, "It would also be nice if he didn't rip a hole in time. There is already a hole in the sky." She sighed in frustration, "Fine. What did you have in mind for stopping him?" Dorian nodded, "You know you are his target. Expecting the trap is the first step in turning it to your advantage. I can't stay in Redcliffe, Alexius doesn't know I'm here. I would like to keep it that way for now. But whenever you're ready to deal with him, I want to be there. I'll be in touch." He turned and started to leave before looking back, "Oh and Felix, try not to get yourself killed." The young man shook his head, "There are worse things than dying Dorian." He bowed to Irasir'in and left as well.

Irasir'in met up with Cassandra and Varric at the tavern, "We're heading back to Haven for now." They glanced at each other, "How did the meeting go?" The elf cast a look around, "We will discuss it later. For now we need to return to Haven, I will fill you in on the way." Cassandra nodded and set about getting the soldiers gathered. Once they were ready for the road they set out, once they were well outside of Redcliffe she explained what had happened to the Seeker and the dwarf. After she was done Cassandra frowned, "Do you think we can trust them?" The elf snorted, "No. You can –never- trust a Tevinter." She sighed, "That said, I think that we have little choice but to. For now. Do not worry though. If this turns out to all be some sort of plan on their part to get to me, I will be ready for it. And they will not live long enough to regret it."


	7. I Can See The Future

A/N: Anyone that gets the reference from the title gets a cookie.

Chapter Six: I Can See the Future

Irasir'in walked into Redcliffe Castle with her head held high and with Cassandra and Ironbull at her back, no fear in her eyes as she walked like she owned the Castle around her. She stopped in front of Alexius proudly. He stood with an oily smile, "My friend, it is good to see you again. And your… associates as well. I'm sure we can work out an agreement that is equitable to all parties." He seemed to ignore the look of contempt on her face when he called her friend. Fiona stepped forward, "Are we mages to have no voice in deciding our fate?" Alexius shot her an annoyed look, "Fiona, you would not have turned your followers over to my care if you did not trust me with their lives." Irasir'ins eyes flashed, "The enchantress should have say in her own fate. If she wants such, then I welcome her as a guest of the Inquisition." Fiona gave her a surprised look, "Thank you."

The magister sat down in the throne was an unamused look, "The Inquisition needs mages to close the Breach, and I have them. So, what shall you offer in exchange?" She gave him a flat look, "Nothing." He blinked at her as she continued, "I am going to take the mages and leave. I do not make deals with Tevinter Magisters." He gave her a smirk, "And how do you imagine you'll accomplish such a feat?" Felix answered for her, "She knows everything father." The magisters face darkened, "Felix, what have you done?" Irasir'in spoke up, "Why did you bring me here Magister?" He gave her an angry look, "Do you know what you are? You walk into my stronghold with your stolen mark- a gift you don't even understand- and think you're in control? You're nothing but a mistake." She snorted, "My life is a Tevinter failure as well. Tell me Magister, what exactly was the Breach supposed to accomplish? Was it to bring Tevinter back to the stolen glory it once had?"

Alexius's eyes glazed over slightly, "It was supposed to be a triumph for the Elder One. For this world." Felix stormed forward, "Father, listen to yourself! Do you know what you sound like?" Dorian answered as he arrived, "He sounds exactly like the sort of villainous cliché everyone expects us to be." He stood next to Irasir'in who gave him a cool look while Alexius answered, "Dorian. I gave you a chance to be a part of this; and you turned me down. The Elder One has power you wouldn't believe. He will raise the Imperium from its own ashes." Irasir'in snorted, "You use magic corrupted by arrogance and greed to raise up an empire. Here I thought your people had tried as such once before." Dorian snarked in answer, "Well, you know, it's a chance for the imperium to one-up that whole 'started the Blight' thing." The elf glanced at him, "Next he will want mages to rule the world again. Like that ended well the first time." Alexius scowled at them, "He WILL make the world bow to mages once more. We will rule from the Boeric Ocean to the Frozen Sea." She gave him a disgusted look, "Of course that was the plan…"

Fiona glared at him, "You cannot involve my people in this!" Dorian stepped forward trying to reason with the man, "Alexius, this is exactly what you and I talked about never wanting to happen! Why would you support this?" Felix appealed to his father, no one noticing as the Inquisition agents started picking off the guards, "Stop it, father. Give up the Venatori. Let the Southern mages fight the Breach, and let's go home." He gave his son a desperate look, "No! It's the only way, Felix. He can save you! There is a way, the Elder Once promised! If I undo the mistake at the temple…" Felix shook his head, "I am going to die. You need to accept that." Alexius spun around, "Cease them Venatori! The Elder One demands this elfs life!" The last of the guards fell as the Inquisition agents surrounded them. Irasir'in stepped forward, "Your men are dead, Magister." Alexius's face twisted in hate, "You are a mistake. You should NEVER have existed!" Power not unlike the rifts swirled around his hand as he summoned an amulet, Dorians hands filling with magic as he screamed, "NO!" And attacked the magister. The man staggered as a portal opened and the world went black for Irasir'in.

She pulled herself gasping from inky black water that tasted of death. She cast about frantically and blinked as guards rushed in, yelling something she didn't catch before attacking. She snatched out her blade and power surged along its length as she struck back at the one bearing down on her. Sparks flew as their blades clashed, but after a few blows the guard stumbled in surprise as his blade broke. Cheap metal splashed into the water while she drove her blade into his guts with a snarl. She kicked him off and turned looking for the second just as Dorian finished him. There was a pause as they caught their breaths before Dorian spoke, "Displacement. Probably not what Alexius intended…. The portal must have sent us to the largest conflux of arcane energy." Irasir'in looked around, "Then where did we end up?" He thought a moment as he looked around, "This looks like this is still Redcliffe, so if it wasn't simply where… ah it must be when! He must have used the amulet as a focus and moved us through time!" She frowned, "But the power needed, the calculations… it should be impossible." Dorian nodded, "I would normally agree but obviously Alexius has taken his research to excitingly new heights! We have already seen his temporal rifts, we simply passed through one. Let's take a look around, see where the rift took us. Then we might be able to find a way back. If we can get back."

The elf slowly nodded, "And if we cannot get back… then I suppose we will have to deal with what life has given us." She left her concerns for Malas silent, the Tevinter didn't need to hear about her. They started poking around and Irasir'in found a key to the nearby gate on one of the guards. She unlocked the door and they slowly made their way through the dungeon, she gave the red lyrium a concerned look as they went but put it at the back of her mind for now. No need to worry over something she could not change. The building reeked of death and corruption. After a while Dorian spoke up, "Alexius has made a dreadful mess of the place." Irasir'in glanced back, "When has a Magister done anything less?" He snorted, "I would have to agree it is a common trend. Along with playing with magic they can't control or comprehend." She smirked a bit, "Sometimes it is not even magic they made." He chuckled quietly as the tension in his shoulders eased a bit. They found a prisoner but talking to him showed that he was simply mad so they moved along.

The first guards they found did not last long, the two man were dispatched easily by the mages. She studied the ruined castle and felt a chill, what was the rest of the world like that his own fortress had fallen into such disrepair? That was when she heard the singing. "Three hundred bottles of beer on the wall, three hundred bottles of beer… take one down, pass it around…" It lacked any energy, the singer trailing off with a disgusted noise. She saw Ironbull and stepped forward, "Bull?" He turned and looked at her in surprise as she quickly froze the lock and shattered it with her sword, "You're not dead? You're supposed to be dead. There was a burn on the ground and everything." Dorian answered for her, "Alexius didn't kill us, his spell sent us through time. This is our future." Ironbull gave him a flat look, "Well this is my present. And in my past, I definitely saw you both die." Irasir'in took a step forward to get a good look at him and frowned at his odd color, "Are you alright Ironbull? You look…" He walked past her to leave the cell, "Red lyrium. If I'm lucky, it'll kill me. If not… I'm hoping I die fighting." She nodded silently as Dorian answered quickly, "No he's not. If we go back and stop Alexius he will be fine remember?"

Ironbull shook his head, "Alexius is not the one you need to worry about. It's his 'Elder One.' He killed the Empress of Orlais, and used the confusion to launch an invasion of the south. The army was all demons. Have you ever fought a demon army? I don't recommend it." She looked away, "I… fought something that at the time felt similar. We will end that Magister for what he has done, I swear the Mythal that it will be done." Ironbull gave her an approving nod, "Let's go then. No time like the present." It wasn't long after that that she heard the prayer. Irasir'in knew that voice anywhere and quickened her pace as she sought it out, finding the Seeker locked in a cell not unlike the one she found Ironbull in. The Seeker lifted her head as the elf arrived and her eyes lit up, "You have returned to us. Can it be? Has Andraste given us another chance?" She suddenly looked away, "Maker forgive me, I failed you. I failed everyone. The end must truly be upon us if the dead return to life." The elf cracked open the lock as she had the other one, "You are wounded. Poisoned..." The Seeker didn't look at her, "Nothing you do can help me now. I will be with the Maker soon." Dorian spoke, "Alexius sent us forward in time. If we find him, we may be able to return to the present." Cassandra pushed herself to her feet with a spark slowly coming to life in her eyes, "Go back in time? Then… can you make it so none of this ever took place?" Irasir'in nodded, "If Dorian can reverse the spell, this may all be undone." The Seeker walked to her, "Alexius's master…" The elf held up a hand, "Ironbull informed us of him and his plans. I wish I had been there, done something to help…" Cassandra gave her a level look, "You are here now."

The elf hesitated and glanced at Dorian, "Cassandra… what happened to Malas?" The Seeker looked away in answer and Irasir'in froze. Dorian started to speak, "When we go back…" The look she gave him silenced him. She spun away and marched out angrily, "I will kill him. Kill him and his damned Elder one. I will let NOTHING stop me." The others hurried after her. She snatched a shield off of one of the dead guards along the way, tossing away her usual staff as she did so. The others exchanged looks but didn't comment. The next few guards they met died hard, the elf didn't wait for the others before charging in with a wordless battle cry. Her blade glowed with magic and her shield sparked with it. She shattered swords and shields, ignoring the wounds she was slowly gathering with every fight. None of them had been serious thus far but they all knew that could change in a second. Cassandra grabbed her shoulder, "You need to calm down-" The elf snapped at her, "I WILL NOT CALM DOWN. THESE MOSTERS…." She took a deep breath, "I will kill them. Do not try to stop me." She pulled away sharply and pushed on.

She heard the guards torturing a priest, heard her death scream as the elf blew the door in with a spell. She slammed into the first guard like a charging warhorse, smashing him into the ground. Dorians spells shot past to set another on fire while Cassandra and Ironbull engaged the rest. Irasir'in took her guard apart, ignoring the blood that now soaked her clothes and dripped from her hands. The fight was over not long after that, swift and brutal. She studied the dead priest a moment before pushing on. The next door she could hear a familiar voice as it denied another torturer answers. She slammed the door open and the guard jumped, turning in surprise before Liliana wrapped her legs around his head and snapped his neck. Irasir'in grabbed a key and started undoing her chains as the withered woman whispered, "You're alive."

Even at a glance the elf could tell that the Nightingale was dying. With her pale skin and sunken eyes, she wondered how the woman even still lived. She answered softly, "We never died. Alexius miscalculated." The spy masters eyes were dead as she spoke, "Then it will be his last mistake. Do you have weapons?" Irasir'in held up her sword in answer and the other woman nodded, "Good." She went and retrieved her weapons as a confused Dorian spoke, "You aren't curious how we got here?" She didn't look at him as she spoke, "No." Dorian cleared his throat, "Alexius sent us into the future. This, his victory and his Elder One, they were never meant to be." Irasir'in gave him a cold look, "You keep speaking as though this is some sort of dream or nightmare. This might be something we can change, but it is their present and home. I doubt they want to hear how excited you are to leave it." He gave her an annoyed look, "I plan to fix it." She shook her head, "It means little to them here and now. They have suffered enough, you do not need to taunt them with the hope of seeing things they will never see."

The sister gave her a tired look but didn't disagree. Dorian scowled at her but stopped talking anyway. She silently led the way, ignoring the others as they began to talk. They found a rift but closed it swiftly, smashing the demons into the ground. They walked hall filled with death, led by the grim faced Irasir'in as she marched like a woman possessed. She knew that the blood soaking her clothes was her own as well, that she should stop and bandage the wounds. Instead she quaffed an elfroot potion and kept going, letting the healing potion keep her on her feet. It would only slow the bleeding but it would replenish enough of her blood that it wouldn't slow her down. A second rift, then a third. The fighting seemed endless, demons pulling themselves through reality to try and consume them. Irasir'in found her supply of magic beginning to wane finally, despite the huge amounts of mana she felt in the air. She silently tapped into something darker for her power, her blood singing as it fed her magics. Her blows were faster and stronger, her shield able to take more blows, but she knew the price of it would be immense if she wasn't careful. She had to make it to Alexius before she used too much.

She was tired when they found the throne room, shoving the doors open more by sheer will than anything. She stalked up behind the Magister and came to a stop, glaring at his back as he stood facing a fire with Felix sitting limply next to his father, "Face me Magister filth. I would have you see your death coming." Alexius didn't turn, "And here you are. I knew you would show yourself again, that I hadn't destroyed you. I didn't know it would be now but I knew it would come. My final failure…" Dorians voice was filled with anger as he spoke, "Was it worth it? Everything you did to the world, to youself?" Alexius shook his head, still not looking at them, "It doesn't matter now. All we can do is wait for the end." Irasir'in scowled, "What do you mean the end? The only end coming is yours." The magister almost laughed as he spoke, "The irony that you should appear now, of all the possibilities. All that I fought for, all that I betrayed; what have I wrought? Ruin and death, there is nothing else. The Elder One comes, for me, for you, for us all."

Leliana stormed forward and grabbed the listless boy, putting a blade to his throat. The magister came to life, reaching out to his son, "Felix!" Dorian gaped having not recognized him, "That's Felix? Makers breath, Alexius what have you done?" The magister looked at him with a mad and desperate glint in his eyes, "He would have died Dorian, I saved him!" He looked back at the spy master, "Please, don't hurt my son; I'll do anything you ask!" Irasir'in looked at him with no mercy in her eyes and said nothing as Leliana glared at him, "I want the world back." She slit his throat and the man screamed in anguish, "No! …..no. NO!" He slammed his staff down and blew Leliana back. The elf shot forward, drawing her blade as she went. He turned to face her and his eyes widened as blood was drawn from her wounds, swirling around her blade as she slammed into him. He lifted his staff and blocked the first blow, watching as a piece of metal flew from its handle. Her every blow took more and more material from the staff, the elf hammering against his staff. No quarter was offered or given as she hammered away until his staff shattered. She slashed his chest before driving her blade into his guts. She hacked and slashed at him with a scream of rage until she finally couldn't anymore and dropped to a knee panting. She was painted in the magisters blood, barely registering that the others fought his guards.

Next she noticed Cassandra was placing a hand on her shoulder, "He is dead Herald." The elf didn't look at her, "Irasir'in. Call me Irasir'in. I hate that title more and more every time I hear it." The Seeker nodded silently as Dorian came over looking sick at the sight of his mentors corpse, "He… he wanted to die didn't he. All those lies he told himself, the justifications… He lost Felix long ago and didn't even notice. Oh Alexius…" She just shook her head slightly before pulling an amulet off of his bloody body. Dorian took it from her and spoke softly, "This is the same amulet he used before. I think it's the same one we made in Minrathous. That's a relief. Give me an hour to figure out the spell he used and I should be able to reopen the rift." Leliana gave him a shocked look, "An hour? That's impossible! You must go NOW!" The world shook and they heard a roar. Irasir'in shivered, she had heard something like it once before. It did not bode well.

Ironbull and Cassandra exchanged looks before Ironbull spoke, "We'll head out front, keep them off your tail." Irasir'in watched them a moment before nodding sharply, "Mythal watch over you all. Dorian, work fast, they can only buy us so much time." She listened silently as the others fought outside, death and destruction reigning. Finally, inevitably, the doors broke and a demon strode in. It dragged the corpse of Ironbull and tossed him aside, stalking forward as Leliana shot arrow after arrow into the charging enemies. She could see the fallen Seeker from where she was, and her heart broke for them. She had abandoned them all to this fate. Abandoned the world to it. Abandoned… her daughter. She hadn't really processed that, refused to. Couldn't. If she did then she would never be able to fight on. She watched as the spy master finally was caught, as the demon moved in for the kill. Dorian called to her as the rift opened. She gave the fallen world one last look before entering the rift in silence.

On the other side the world looked… new again. Alive once more. Dorian looked at Alexius, alive and whole, and almost smiled, "You'll have to better than that." Alexius fell to his knees before them without a word. Irasir'in didn't speak to the man she had just killed. She could feel the others starring at the blood that covered her, wondering at what happened. She didn't care. She was tired now. So very tired. The magister spoke to his son but she didn't hear the words, simply thinking of her own child left back at Haven. She wanted to go back to her, return to her peaceful life hiding from the Shemlim. But she couldn't, not when the Elder One would destroy everything as he had. Would? She wasn't sure now. The guards took him away and she sighed as armored boots thumped into the hall. Of course it wasn't over. She pulled herself out of her own mind with some effort to face what came next.

A handsome man in fine clothing strode forward beside a beautiful woman at his side, walking with surpreme authority as his men flanked him. He spoke clearly for all to hear, "Grand Enchanter, we would like to discuss your abuse of our hospitality." Fiona stepped forward nervously, "Your… majesties." The woman spoke next, "When we offered the mages sanctuary, we did not give them the right to drive people from their homes." She cleared her throat, "King Alister, Queen Anora. I assure you we never intended-" The queen interrupted her, "In light of your actions, good intentions are no longer enough." Alister spoke next, "You and your followers have worn out your welcome, leave Fereldon or we will be forced to make you leave." Fiona shook her head, "But we have hundreds who need protection, where will we go?" Irasir'in sighed and spoke up, "You will be leaving here with the Inquisition." Fiona gave her a suspicious look, "And what are the terms of this arrangement?" Dorian answered, "Hopefully better than what Alexius gave you. The Inquisition is better than that yes?" She nodded tiredly, "You will be our allies. The magister was mad, but I will not blame those he tricked for his actions." Fiona looked surprised, "That is a generous offer, but will the rest of the Inquisition honor it?" Irasir'in nodded, "We are not worried about anything but closing the Breach. So long as you do not make any more deals with Tevinter, I will see to it that you and your people are dealt with fairly." Alister spoke up, "A generous offer. I doubt you'll get a better one from us."

Fiona thought a moment before nodding, "We accept. It would be madness not to." Irasir'in nodded, "So be it. We will meet you in Haven Grand Enchanter." She didn't pay any mind to whatever else they had to say, walking purposely out. Cassandra, Dorian, and Ironbull hurried to catch up to her, "Herald, you are wounded. We should see a healer." She kept walking without looking back, her gait starting to become unsteady, "Call me Irasir'in." The Seeker frowned, "But-" The elf stopped, "No. No more Herald, no more calling me by that bloody title. We have everything we need to close the Breach and I…." Her voice trailed off and she teetered a bit, "I am very tired Cassandra. So very…. Very tired. Just… call me Irasir…" Her voice trailed off as she pitched forward and shouting followed her down into the dark.


	8. Hot springs and Midnight Songs

A/N: This might end up getting edited at some point later, not sure yet.

Chapter Seven Hot springs and Midnight Songs

It had been two weeks since Redcliffe. The mages hadn't so much been welcomed as tolerated in Haven, but pushing from the Inquisitions leadership had kept things peaceful if nothing else. Irasir'in had spent the first week stuck in a healers hut before she had forced her way out and back to Haven. Cassandra had watched over her along with Ironbull, the two of them taking turns standing guard. The trip back with the worn and wounded Herald had felt longer than the trip there, and the Seeker was tired from it.

While they had been away the scouts had found a set of hot springs north of Haven, and she decided to make the most of it. She waited till late in the evening and slipped out when no one was looking, heading over to the spring quietly. She checked around to make sure there was no one around before stripping down and heading in.

Cassandra sunk into the hot spring slowly, relaxing as the warmth of the water spread across her skin and sank into her bones. She sighed and smiled to herself. This was a blessing from the Maker himself as far as she was concerned, and a most welcome one at that. She was so wrapped up in enjoying the spring that she didn't hear anyone approaching until Irasir'in spoke, "It looks like you are enjoying yourself here Cassandra." The other woman nearly jumped out of the spring in surprise before remembering she wasn't wearing anything, "H-herald! What are you doing here?" The elf laughed softly, her arms only recently freed of the bandages that had covered them for the last few week.

The Seeker blinked as the elf began undoing her top, "Well I was thinking of enjoying the hot spring." She stopped half way through removing her shirt, "You do not mind if I join you do you?" The Seeker hesitated a moment but the spring was big enough for the two of them... "No of course not. I was just surprised to see you." Irasir'in smiled again and stripped off her top. Cassandra couldn't help but peek at the other woman's extensive tattoos and the freshly healed scars on her body, a curiosity for them getting the better of her. The elf's Vallaslin didn't simply cover her face and neck but also sunk down to the top of her breasts and continued between them to form a knot over her heart. The roots of the tattoo sunk down to frame her chest and traveled down to disappear into her pants, the deep green standing out against her skin.

The skin was marred with scars beyond the fresh ones from their last adventure, more than the Seeker was expecting to see. Some were small things but most were clearly made by blades of some kind, and many looked as though they had been life threatening. The elf carried all the marks of having live the hard life of a warrior. She looked away from the marks as Irasir'in relieved herself of her trousers as well and sunk into the hot spring. She sighed heavily, "After months of bathing in cold rivers, this is exactly what I needed." The Seeker smiled a bit as she nodded her agreement.

The two woman sat there, enjoying the spring for a time before Irasir'in broke the comfortable silence, "So tell me mighty Seeker, is there anyone in your life?" Cassandra opened an eye to look at her, "What do you mean?" The elf shrugged, "Is there anyone in your life? A lover, a paramour, a husband maybe." Cassandra shifted, "Of course not. I have no time for frivolous things, my duties come before all else." Irasir'in gave her an odd look and the Seeker frowned, "What? Do you think it is odd to think such?" The elf shook her head, "No, you just... reminded me of someone else that said the same thing to me once." She sighed, "And I would honestly have to disagree with you that the call of duty makes even the idea of romance frivolous. I think it something everyone should have in their lives, all the faith and devotion to belief in the world will not warm the bed beside you or give you a strong shoulder that we sometimes need to have to go on." Cassandra shook her head, "I do not need the shoulder of some man to be strong." Irasir'in laughed softly as she sank deeper into the water, "I never said it had to be a man. Woman can be as strong and warm as anyone else." The other woman looked at her in surprise, "I... did not know you had such... tastes." Irasir'in laughed, "Most would assume otherwise since I have a child. But I think that love is something you find in a person rather in a gender."

Cassandra thought on the elf's words for a while, "I... hadn't ever thought of... being with another woman. Everything that I read... well the ideal in my head was always a strong man sweeping me off my feet." Irasir'in laughed and answered, "My ideal for romance is flowers and candles on a moonlit night, poetry spoken softly in my ear..." Irasir'in spoke the next part softer, "Songs that make me think of the hope the future will bring." Silence followed before Cassandra suddenly asked, "Do you know any songs like that?" Irasir'in smiled a bit sadly, "I know but a few song that are not meant to be prayers to old elven gods. And those songs are... as sad as they are filled with love." Cassandra watched her a moment, "Would you sing one? I haven't really heard many Elevhen songs beyond... well not many."

The elf chewed on her lip and looked a bit embarrassed, "To be honest I don't like singing to anyone but Malas." The Seeker shrugged, "Well that's fine then." There was a pause before Irasir'in suddenly spoke, "I never thanked you." The Seeker looked up in surprise, "What?" The elf looked at her intently, "You watched over me when I was wounded. I know Ironbull did as well, but he is being paid to be my bodyguard. You had no obligation to do so." Cassandra shook her head, "Without you the Inquisition would be unable to close the Breach. I was simply doing my duty." Irasir'in shrugged, "None the less. Thank you. I have become so use to watching over Malas, it is… nice to have someone watching over me." Cassandra cleared her throat a bit embarrassed, "Yes well… you are welcome then I suppose."

She sat there a moment before asking, "I was wondering…. Since you came back from Redcliffe you have been quiet. What happened that left you so wounded when you emerged from the rift?" The elf was deathly silent before, "I… we were sent to the future. We…. Well what we saw is something I will be discussing with you and the others at the next meeting in the war room. But while there… I met you." She frowned, "Met me… how were you sent to the future in the first place? Are you sure it was the future?" The elf sighed, "Yes I am sure. The details… well I saw Venatori win after I was sent forward, I even learned how they did so. That is for later though, what is important…" She stopped again and seemed to think a moment before, "You saved my life. More you gave us the time we needed to return to the present."

Cassandra was silent a moment before she slowly nodded. "I… am glad that I could help you." The elf didn't look at her as she murmured softly, "I need to thank you for that as well, you gave me far more than you could imagine. Even if it will hopefully not come to pass that you need to." Cassandra studied the woman a moment before she nodded and pushed herself out of the water. Irasir'in cocked her head as the Seeker spoke, "We should get back. Before anyone else comes here to use the spring." Irasir'in sighed before she nodded in agreement and got out to retrieve the towel and clothes she had brought with her. As they started to get dressed on the opposite sides of the spring; Cassandra wondered if the tattoo that ran so far across the other woman's body might be on her back too, and she found her eyes drawn across to Irasir'in by the thought.

She stared in surprise at the markings, there were tattoos there as well but not the root work that was on her front. Instead there was the visage of a wolf there and the marking were newer than the others, the tattoo had been made on top of various scars that marked the elves back. It trailed down to sit just below her waist, sitting at the top of her posterior. She quickly looked away as she realized she had begun to stare at the elf's body a bit too intently as Irasir'in leaned down to pull up her pants; the elf glanced back at her as though she could feel the Seekers eyes upon her but the Seeker didn't think she had noticed. She must not have since she said nothing.

They finished getting dressed quietly and Cassandra found her mind wandering back to what the elf said, love being something you found in a person and not in a gender. She shook her head a bit to banish the thoughts but her eyes went back to Irasir'in with the lingering ring of it in her head. Finally she pulled her eyes away from the elf again and chastised herself for letting a simple thought distract her when she had so much to do. She put purpose into her stride heading back to Haven, leaving Irasir'in to watch her go with a lingering and thoughtful look of her own.

As the next day had given way to the night and Cassandra found herself wandering the camp aimlessly. She had returned to Haven that night with urgency in her step, thoughts of the conversation from the hot spring stuck in her head. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind, but it wasn't until she threw herself into her morning exercises the next morning that she was able to fully be rid of them. Her day was normal after that and she saw to organizing the mages that were still trickling in from Redcliff. That night, after all the work she put into keeping Haven peaceful, she finally had a moment to herself. She walked through Haven and greeted people as they passed, the small pleasantries a good change of pace after all the rushing around. Eventually she found herself outside of Haven and walking the shores of the lake alone, studying the star light as it danced across the surface of the water. She thought herself far from the world and alone completely until she heard singing. The voice was carried to her on the wind, a woman's voice that rang as a chime on the night air. Cassandra found herself drawn in and let her feet carry her closer looking to find the singer.

"Too long I have traveled, soon I'll see her smiling;

The girl in Red Crossing I'm longing to see.

O, I know she is there, daisies in her hair;

Wating by the chantry to marry me."

She ducked under branches and pushed through bushes as the singing grew louder and clearer with each step. The singer's voice was filled with a sound that Cassandra could not quite place.

"I've dreamed of the kiss I stole 'neath the arbor;

I've dreamed of the promise 'neath the old ash tree;

O, I know she is there, daisies in her hair;

Waiting by the chantry to marry me."

She placed the sound now, it was sorrow. She didn't understand why, not with a song that with words so sweet. She finally placed the voice as well as she pushed through to the clearing to see Irasir'in singing to the lake and the girl that silently picked night flowers in front of her.

"One last stream to cross, one last hill to wander;

Until I reach the love I'm longing to see;

O, I know she is there, daisies in her hair;

Waiting by the chantry to marry me."

Malas spotted the Seeker but her mother was didn't notice, wrapped up in the song as she was. The child put a finger to her lips in a silent hush and Cassandra nodded to show that she understood.

"Running through the streets, only silence follows;

Elven arrows sunk into the old ash tree;

O, I know she's there, daisies in her hair;

Waiting by the chantry to marry me.

Ruby on the green, petals lost and drifting.

Take her to His side, Andraste hear my plea,

I found her lying there, daisies in her hair;

Waiting by the chantry to marry me."

The silence that followed was heavy and after a little awhile Malas spoke up, her common coming along more but it still sounded like she had to pick her words carefully, "Your singing is so pretty mama." Irasir'in smiled, "Thank you Malas, I'm glad you enjoy it. What song did you want to hear next?" Malas thought, "I think... the knight in silver?" Her mother frowned, "I thought you didn't like that one." The girl smiled, "Yeah but I need to learn it too right? Like the other old songs, the ones we sing to remember." Irasir'in as quiet a moment before nodding, "Alright. This is the last one for tonight." Malas nodded and Irasir'in settled herself. She hummed a bit to get the tune before she began to sing again.

"Bright silver were his helm and chain; Bright silver on his horse's rein; He rode upon the golden plain; The brave and comely knight.

The elves stood fast, their banners high; They would not flee, they would not fly; Though knowing they would surely die; The last of Dalish might.

He met them on the golden field; The fate of elvenkind now sealed; In mercy, urged them all to yield; He sorrowed for their plight.

But prideful were the Dalish kin; Their vengeful hearts could not give in; With raging cry and dreadful grin; They struck against the Light.

Beneath the red and fading sun; The elven stand was swift undone; 'Til they were vanquished, all but one; Defiant in her fight.

Her brothers on the field lay slain; He would not see her die in vain; In grief, cried "Yield!" to her again; That good and gentle knight.

He could not strike; his shield dropped low; She lifted sword against her foe; They did not see the far-off bow; Its arrow loosed in flight.

A sharpened thorn, a searing brand; A shot the elf could not withstand; The sword fell lifeless from her hand; With drops of crimson bright.

He said no word, he made no sound; But caught her, falling to the ground; Her dark hair flowing, all unbound; A veil as black as night.

And up around him came the call; That celebrated Dalish fall; The cry of vic'try came from all; Except the silver knight.

The glimmer of his helm and chain; Now dull with dark and bloody stain; He looked and saw upon the plain; The dying elven light.

Elf sword in hand, heart filled with woe; No one would ever see him go; But with a solemn prayer, spoke low; He vanished into night.

They say he rode on easterly; The sword he placed beneath a tree; And there remained, on bended knee; That grave and mournful knight."

Silence surrounded them again, and Malas sat beside her mother with the night flowers as she weaved them into a small circlet. Irasir'in sighed, "I think that is enough sad songs for one night. It's late, and far past your bed time." The girl looked disappointed but nodded, "Yes Mama. Can I give this to Lady Sandra first?" She held up the flower circlet as she said that and the elf smiled, "Of course dear. If she's still up." Malas's eyes lit up saying, "She is!" She hurried across the clearing to the Seeker in question, holding out the flowers for her to take. Cassandra looked sheepish as she took the circlet and Irasir'in gave her a surprised look, "Cassandra! How long have you been over there?" The other woman hesitated, "Only a short while. I apologize for not announcing myself, I just... didn't want you to stop singing. You have a very... lovely voice."

The elf studied her a moment before nodding slowly, "Thank you Lady Seeker. I am glad that you enjoyed my singing. I hope you will excuse me and Malas though, I do need to put her in bed before it gets much later." The warrior nodded, "Of course. Have a good evening." Irasir'in paused, "Actually Cassandra… would you like to join me for a drink later tonight?" Malas said protest in elvhen and Irasir'in spoke softly to her to quiet her. The Seeker hesitated a moment before nodding, "I suppose it would not hurt to have a drink." The elf smiled, "I will be over to the Singing Maiden in an hour or two. After this one is in bed." She ruffled the girl's hair. She said something that made Irasir'in blush and move her along chiding her in elvhen. She might not understand the words they were using but the body language was clear.

An hour later Cassandra was sitting in a back corner of the tavern watching the other patrons, quietly wondering why she was there. The Herald… no Irasir'in had asked her to come, but why? The elf never came to the tavern, preferring to spend her time with Malas. More, she wasn't sure she had ever even seen her drink before. And yet here she was, sitting in a corner of the tavern nursing a warming cup of ale. She was musing over this when someone slipped into the chair across from her. She looked up and nodded to Irasir'in as she smiled at the Seeker, "Sorry to keep you waiting. Malas did not want to go to bed tonight." Cassandra shook her head, "It is fine. I expected as much to be honest, children take up much of your time."

Irasir'in laughed, "True, and I would not have it any other way. She is my world after all." The Seeker nodded silently. There was a long pause with a server coming by to give the elf a drink. It was odd to sit with her there and Cassandra finally asked, "Much as I do enjoy your company, is there a reason you asked to meet me here?" The elf hesitated, "I… yes. I guess I just…. Needed someone to talk to. Though now that I'm here, I am unsure of what to say." The Seeker sipped her drink and studied the elf as she began to shift restless in her chair while playing with her cup. Finally Cassandra put down her cup, "Tell me what is troubling you Irasir'in." The elf gave her an odd look at the use of her name before slowly nodding and sagging in her chair.

"If the future comes to pass…. Everyone will die. Including…. Malas." The Seeker froze a moment before slowly nodding, so that was it. She was worried about what could be. The elf continued, "I know I can stop it now. Or at least I have a chance to. At the very least, I can die trying before I allow it, but the idea…. I cannot get it out of my head Cassandra. All I can do is hear it again and again in my head, hearing that she…. You asked why I was wounded so badly. It is because when I heard that she was dead, I stopped fighting as a mage or a warrior and fought as a beast. I was… I am not sure. Perhaps I was trying to kill everything that could have hurt her. Maybe I thought if I fought hard enough it would get me back to a time when that was a lie." She shivered, "Gods Cassandra. I have been trying to ignore it. To smile for Malas and everyone else, but I… I do not know if I can."

The Seeker leaned forward, "You do not have to. There is nothing wrong with showing how you feel Irasir'in, no one will find fault in that." The elf sighed heavily, "I do not want to worry my daughter. She does not need my worries to become hers, not when she…. She already worries about the mark glowing in my hand, about the way I leave to fight battles that can leave me so wounded. She is terrified that every time I leave it will be the last time she sees me. I just… I do not know what to do anymore Cassandra, I always try to keep a level head and do what's right but… sometimes I feel like I am drowning." Cassandra thought a moment, "You cannot let these worries and fears consume you, you will do no good for anyone if you do. Least of all your daughter. I know that this can be hard, you did not ask for any of this. But the Maker saw fit to place you into this position, and He would not have done so if He did not think you could handle it. And you are not alone, you do not need to bear the burden alone."

Irasir'in studied her a moment, "No I am not." She ran a hand across her face tiredly, "You are right. I have the whole Inquisition at my side. And you. I have to remind myself often that I have allies, people that I can rely on. I guess…. I needed to hear someone say that I suppose." Cassandra nodded and the silence that fell was more comfortable than the last one. The elf looked relieved now, like a weight had been lifted. The silence continued on as they sipped their drinks before the elf finally cleared her throat, "So tell me, how are things going with the mages? Are they settling in alright?" The Seeker nodded, "There are some among our ranks that are concerned about how much freedom they have, but it is nothing to worry about. They understand that the mages are our allies, Cullens and I have been making sure that the men remember to behave themselves."

Irasir'in nodded smiling a bit, "I am glad to hear it. I was worried I was going to start riots." Cassandra laughed, "No need to worry yourself. We have it well in hand." The elf nodded and finished her drink before sighing, "We have a meeting tomorrow with the others. We should probably turn in, it is already late after all." The Seeker nodded to her and stood, "Agreed. It would be best if we are well rested, such meeting tend to be long and tedious." The elf chuckled a bit as she stood too and paused, "Thank you Cassandra. For coming here and talking to me I mean." The woman nodded, "Of course. If you ever need to talk Irasir'in, I would be more than happy to do so." The elf smiled, "I will hold you to that. Good night Cassandra." The Seeker nodded again, "Rest well Irasir'in."

A/N: And as it always should and will be, please feel free to review. Till next time.


	9. The peace and the Storm

A/N: This is one of the shortest chapters I've written, but honestly I think it says just enough. Italics are Elvish replacements here. Also I would like to take a moment to thank everyone that has been following my story, and those of you that have reviewed. Seeing that I have people reading this regularly when I update, and that some people even thought enough of the story to leave a review, that really helps me to keep motivated in my writing! So thank you all for reading, and I hope you will continue to enjoy my story. Now back to the story!

Chapter Eight The peace and the Storm

Haven was in celebration, the Breach was closed and while the sky was scarred with the passing the Breach itself was gone. Irasir'in looked over the village and smiled at the people as they danced, sang, and drank to the victory they had worked so hard to arrive at. Malas drawing next to her, a happy smile on her face as she doodled away. She had wanted to celebrate with everyone else but Irasir'in pulled her away from the crowds when the ale had started to flow a little too freely to let a child hang around the soldiers. Her head turned slightly when she heard footsteps approaching, spying Cassandra as she came up to join the elf and her daughter over looking the rest of the world.

After awhile the Seeker spoke softly, "Solas has confirmed it, the Breach is sealed. We have reports of lingering rifts, and have many unanswered questions, but this is a victory. And word of your heroism has spread." Irasir'in shook her head, "I would rather it didn't. I didn't do this alone and this isn't even over yet. Not until we have whoever is responsible for this in hand." Cassandra looked down at the people below, "You may not have done this alone but we could not have done it without you. You are perhaps too close to this to see how important you are to the inquisition." Irasir'in wondered idly if she could be important to more than just the inquisition. She blinked at the unexpected and unbidden thought.

The look on her face must have given at least a bit of her thought away as Cassandra glanced at her and then focused on the look, "Is something wrong?" The elf shook her head, "No no nothing wrong. Just... an odd thought crossed my mind is all. Not even an unpleasant one just.. unexpected." Cassandra began to ask about it when the alarm bells began to ring and soldiers ran for the gate. The two of them starred in shock a moment before the Seeker drew her blade, "We must get to the gate!" Irasir'in cast about and found a sword forgotten by a celebrating soldier no doubt, "Malas get to the chantry NOW! You are NOT to leave it until I tell you otherwise, no matter what!" The girl looked scared, _"Mama what's-"_ The woman went over to her daughter while Cassandra bounced impatiently on her heels, _"Now is not the time for questions Malas, go to the Chantry and stay there until either I get back or Cassandra comes to get you. Go quickly!"_ The girl hesitated and then hug her mothers legs, _"Mythal watch over you mother."_ Irasir'in put a hand on her head, _"May she watch over you as well. Now go."_ The girl ran into the chantry and the elf nodded to Cassandra before they set off for the gate at a run.

Haven was in chaos, men and woman running for safety into the deeper parts of the small village. Soldiers ran to the forward and they met up with Cullen and Josephine there, the two were already discussing who they were fighting. Irasir'in wasted no time as they got there, "Who are we fighting, and what are their numbers?" Cullen turned to her grimly, "They fly no banner and we have not had time to count but it is safe to say we are heavily out numbered." There was a banging on the gate and a man, no a boys voice called through, "I can't come in unless you open!" Cullen opened his mouth to say something but Irasir'in was already at the gate opening them. With an army so openly marching to the gates, she doubted they would bother with trickery to get inside. Outside a strange boy in a large hat stood among a bit over a half dozen dead men.

She glanced at them and focus on the boy as he came forward, "I'm Cole, I came here to warn you. To help. People are coming to hurt you." She frowned at the phrasing when an army of enemies filled the woods and covered the mountains around them. "You probably already know-" She had no time for rambling, "What is this? What's going on?" Cole shifted closer, "The Templar are coming to kill you." Cullen stormed forward, "The Templars? Is this their-" Irasir'in held up a hand, "Let the boy finish. We need to hear all he has to say before questioning it." The warrior glowered but looked at the boy as he continued, "The Red Templars went to the Elder One. You know him and he knows you. You took his mages;" The boy suddenly turned and pointed into the distance, "There."

She starred at the outcrop that Cole pointed to, seeing not only the leader of the Templars but also a taller beast of a once human thing standing beside him. She couldn't make out too many details but she could see the Red Lyrium from where she was. It sent a chill through her. "He is very angry that you took his mages." Irasir'in didn't take her eyes off the army, "Cullen give me a plan. Anything." The ex-Templar paused a moment, "Haven's no fortress. We have to control the battlefield, hit them hard." He started calling out his orders to the mages and soldiers with them. The elf hefted her blade and retrieved a shield from one of the fallen enemies outside the gate. The soldiers formed up on her and she led the way into the fight.

The fighting was brutal as mages and Inquisitorial soldiers fought hard to protect what had become their home against the Templar. The Templars were tainted by red lyrium and she could smell it on them before she ever saw signs of the infection. Most of the Templars dampened the magics tossed about by the mages but some of them seemed beyond thought and threw themselves bodily at the Inquisition without bothering to defend themselves. Trebuchet crews launched stones and lyrium bombs at the enemy while Templar soldiers charged them and their defenders in seemingly never ending waves. Finally an idea formed and they redirected one of the siege weapons to hit the mountain and start an avalanche, using a mountain to bury their enemy.

Tired cheers filled the air as a horn was blown signaling for the troops to regroup at Haven. Until the dragon came and silenced those cheers. It began to rain fire down on them all and the retreat was called once again, the troops falling back into Haven. Cullen was directing people to the Chantry, the only building that could survive a direct hit from the beast. Irasir'in and Cassandra helped who they could and saw the others doing so as well, Iron Bull lifting half a house to get a handful of people out, Blackwall and Sera blocking the path of stray Templar as civilians fled for safety.

It was a mess though, and Irasir'in's face grew grim as they worked their way to the Chantry. The Chantry was filled with the wounded, the dead, and soldiers with faces filled with despair. So many wounded and dead... Malas slammed into her mothers side crying into her dirty and blood stained clothes, babbling at her in elvish that descended into gibberish. Irasir'in ran a hand through her daughters hair and quietly lied, _"It's alright love. We'll all get out just fine, you wait and see."_ She only half listened to Cullens report, already knowing what he would say just by looking around.

Cole spoke up, "The Elder One doesn't care about the village. He only wants the herald." Irasir'in's eyes were cold as she answered, "Then I will go out and face him. If it is going to save everyone else..." Cole shook his head, "It won't. He wants to kill you. No one else matters but he'll crush them, kill them anyway. I don't like him." Cullen starred at the boy flabbergasted, "You don't- herald there are no tactics to make this survivable. The only thing that slowed them was the avalanche, we could turn the remaining trebuchets-" Irasir'in finished the thought, "And cause one more to bury Haven. We would die but we would die on our own terms and take a chunk of them with us if not all."

Cullen nodded with grim silence. Cole spoke up again, "Chancellor Rodrick can help. He wants to say it before he dies." The man, an old enemy of theirs that was now dying from a stab wound earned by trying to stop the blow of a new enemy, spoke slowly, "There is a path. You wouldn't know it unless you made the summer pilgrimage as I have. The people can escape, she must have shown me... Andraste must have shown me so that I could t-tell you."

Irasir'in studied him a moment and then slowly nodded and looked to Cullen, "Will it work? Can you get them out while I set off the siege weapon?" The Templar hesitated, "Possibly, if he shows us the path. What of your escape?" She was silent and Cullen studied her face which had hardened to stone, "Perhaps you will surprise it. Find a way." He turned and called the troops to action, having them guide the civilians out. The Chancellor looked at her, "Herald, if the Inquisition is meant for this, if YOU are meant for this... then I will pray for you." She gave him a nod, "I will pray for you as well Chancellor." Him and Cole left to guide the others down the path as Irasir'in turned her attention to her wide eyed daughter, _"You can't stay mama! If you stay..."_

She hushed the girl, _"I will not fall here Malas. After all these years, no Shemlen and his army will be my undoing."_ She knelt down and looked her in the eye, _"But I need you to do a very important job for me. Lady Cassandra will not let me go to do what needs doing, and I am the only one that can survive this."_ The girl looked at her wide eyed, _"Because you're one of the warriors of Mythal."_ Irasir'in gave her a strained smile, _"I am. And the Dreadwolf watches over me so I am far more clever than any enemy. Now what I need you to do Malas is get Lady Cassandra out on the path with everyone else. Just grab onto her arm and don't let go until I come to get you OK?"_

The girl sniffed, _"You promise to come back safe?"_ She nodded, _"Promise."_ The girl gave her a serious look, _"Swear to Mythal."_ Irasir'in laughed _, "You know far too much of the old ways my dear. I swear on my power, my blade, my soul, and my life that I will return to you. Should I fail to then may Mythal bring her justice down upon me."_ Malas nodded and hugged her mother.

Irasir'in kissed her forehead and stood Cassandra came over, "I heard the plan Herald. We need to hurry if we are to buy-" She stopped as Malas latched onto her arm and Irasir'in spoke calmly, "Cassandra I have something more important I need you to do. I need you to take care of Malas until I get back from launching the trebuchet." Cassandras face grew dark, "You canno-" The elf stepped forward and looked her dead in the eye, "Cassandra this is more important to me than anything else in all of Haven. She is what I have been fighting for this entire time, and she is my heart, soul, and life. I need you to make sure she stays safe no matter what." Silence followed before the Seeker finally nodded slowly, "Thank you Cassandra." She kissed her daughter one more time before turning to the door of the Chantry and striding out into the fighting and slowly building snow storm outside with her head held high.


	10. Deaths Door

A/N: Another short chapter, but the focus of this one is Irasir'in's past. Told by the mind of a woman dying from blood loss and exposure. There are a few elvhen words in here, and since their use was brief I just wrote them in the language. I found the words in Project Elvhen done by Fenxshiral, and I would recommend reading his work on it. It's a fascinating thing to read and he has put a lot of thought and time into it. I for one appreciate his work. Oh and I haven't said it in awhile sooo, all the materials this fanfiction are based on is owned by Bioware and EA and all that fun stuff, I don't own Dragon Age or anything really, etc etc words here. Right back to the story with you all!

Chapter Nine: Deaths Door

Irasir'in was cold. That was important, she knew it was. Or maybe the reason she was tired was the important part? She was having trouble remembering right then. Maybe she would remember if she started from the beginning. What was the beginning? No that was too far back. The fall of the dales? Still too far... her lover... her child... his death and her exile... it was so cold. She was walking but she couldn't feel it, only see her feet moving left right left right left, what happened to her legs? They looked like they should hurt. Focus Ira, why am I here? Did father send me on one of his missions to the north? No. Father did no speak to me anymore. Father...

She stumbled in the snow and ice but caught her balance again, couldn't fall yet. No she had to press on. Her soul was waiting a head for her to come. Wasn't it? No she. Her soul... Malas! Her daughter, her soul. She had named her what she was, her hope. Her hope and reason for living after her heart had died. Hartha'sal... so long dead now. Ten years, gone and forgotten. Or... no that was Lath'in. Or was it her? Him, her, them... It was so confusing, and the cold distracting...

Memories skittered across her mind, things half remembered. The first time she had lifted a sword. The first time she had won a duel. The face of her father, so serious and never smiling. The invaders that entered their home, shemlen that had stumbled upon them looking for things lost. The elves of the Dales... she remembered it was the first time her father had smiled since she was a small child. She remember his smile as he helped her clean the life blood of the shemlen from her blade. He was so very proud of her for it.

She remembered a thousand battles, the blood that soaked her hands and the pain of the wounds that still marked her body. Had she won? Or had she lost with every life taken? Blood. So much of it spent, shed by others when they tried to take the secrets of the temple, some by herself defending it. The powerful intoxicating blood that flowed so freely to cast her spells... the only trick father said the Tevinter had made on their own. So much they stole from the betters he said...

Tevinter. They had killed her. Killed Hartha'sal. Her blood splashing across her face, holding her dying love in her arms... the magister. That damned magister. He had filled her head with lies, a honey tongue dancing in the dark. Made her think the world of him, enough to bring him in deep. A mistake that had cost lives that would never be replaced. Some that simply chose the Uthenera after that... she could not though. She had promised Hartha'sal she would always go on. Hartha'sal... she had used that warm, love filled blood to seal the magisters fate. The vow, never again...

The world flickered before her eyes, a darkness creeping in on the edge of her vision. She had to push on. She had promised, she had promised promised promised she would find her hope. The last hope she had... the hope the woman of light guarded for her. Such a beautiful woman, so filled with life and light. And warmth. Strong warm arms that would await her. Warmth. So very cold.

Her mind drifted, as did her feet as she walked. Blades and magic. She had filled them with the twisting power of the fade, made them sharper than any steel could be. What she would do for her old blade, the one that did not crack under the power she wielded. Her blade and armor, locked away with her lost honor they said. But then they said many things. They claimed she would join the shemlen. That her child would be shem and soon she would be as well. But she hadn't. She was as she always had been. Always and forever... like the snow. The snow that fell upon her head, that sent the chill deep into her bones. So very cold...

She remembered the cold. It had been there when they had gone north. She had gone north. Why did she go north? To find more? Those hidden deep in the snow, hiding from the world... the mirrors did not work. The old paths were broken and locked away. Sealed from now till never. Only the gods might... might open them. Mythal, the wolf, the... the others? She couldn't remember, the cold crept into her mind. She forgot the ideas of warmth, lost in the dark, damp cold that surrounded her. Why was it so dark yet so white? She knew the answer, but it was so far away... she stumbled and fell to her knees. Why did she have to get back up? It would be so much warmer if she lay still and let the cold take her. Let herself sleep. She was so tired... but the memory of eyes pulled her to her feet, of promises and hope. Why was she here?

The Inquisition. What was it? The word for them came to mind so easily, but why? Were they important? Did it matter? She remembered pretty faces, kind words, strong words, handsome men... a memory of warmth drove her back to her feet and forward. The woman had the answer. She had her hope in her hands. They had sat in a warmth the surrounded her, filled her so nicely. She had pretended not to see that the woman wore no small clothes. The shemlen were so odd about such things. Her and the others thought nothing of changing while in the temple. Had they? No. She had been odd even among them for that. Father had disapproved...

She dragged her feet through the snow and desperately latched onto the memory of warmth. Of the woman she had been with in that warmth. What was her name? She had her hope. She still had her hope even now. She would guard her hope till there was no hope left. With strong hands and soft eyes in such warmth. Such glorious warmth... warmth and wandering eyes. She felt those eyes again as they watched her. What had she seen? Had she seen the markings of a slave and servant? Had she seen some filthy elf? Had she seen an indecent woman? Had she seen beauty? Irasir'in had seen beauty that day in the warmth of the waters. So much warmth... spoiled only by the Breach...

The breach? No I sealed that. And we won. The Templar... The Elder One. Corypheus. That was his name Corypheus. One of the darkspawn they are called. Is he? No he had a mind of his own so he couldn't be one. So cold... focus focus focus! Where did it start? The temple. No they call it a Chantry. Yes the Chantry. She left... left hope with Cassandra. Warm beautiful Cassandra sitting in the warm water. And hope likes her... reminds her of my stories of her grandfather... she had hope. Hope on her side, hope tomorrow and today. She was hope. Such warm hope... I left the Chantry and fought... things. Along with the soldiers. Allies that stood beside me in battle. They got the weapon I needed ready and... she sent them to safety. I sent them. Me, she or I? So cold... Wonder if they got out... the weapon. Siege weapon to bring the earth crashing down like Mythals fury onto the enemy.

She turned the weapon oh so slowly, made all the longer by those men with crystals growing in them when they tried to kill her. She killed them all. Broke her sword doing it. There was a flash of memory, she fought the red Templars with all she had. Magic surged and she channeled it through her blade, her body shifting between worlds constantly. One second she stood in the fade and the next her blade bit into the armor of the knight. She killed them swiftly but the one with the crystals growing where his arms should be was hard. Her blade couldn't bite into his lyrium body like it did armor. Her blade broke there... but the power lingered in the shards. She drove the broken hilt into his eyes as he drove a spike into her side. Blood... the wound made the cold drive in deeper than it should. So cold. Was it why she was so cold? Was it why she couldn't feel her feet?

She faced the Corypheus, his dragon. He spoke of himself... was he truly a magistar of old Tevinter? They lied so much, no one could trust the. Tevinter lies... father said they had pierced the veil itself so maybe... He had ranted about the anchor... it was meant to open the veil, give Coryphues control... Permanent he called it. Spoiled. He cast her aside to be killed so... the weapon. It was ready. She dropped the mountain and ran, fled for her life. The dragon had chased her, breathed his fire... were her legs burnt? It didn't matter. The fall of snow and stone... it had buried her.

She crossed to the fade and... her arm. She had dug herself out of the snow and... Her arm should hurt. It had shattered, as had her chest... no ribs. Those were ribs broken and shattered. Why was she cold? Because... she was outside. Looking for... for hope. Hope in all this white. All this cold. So cold. Hope was with Cassandra. Cassandra was her hope. The warmth and hope that was her soul in a world where she was lost... she was so tired. Tired and cold. But the promise. She had to come back for her hope. The hope with the one that sought. That warmth she walked to... She would make it. She had to.

The cold made her legs move stiff. Or was that her arms? She lost which they were. Her arms, her legs, perhaps they were her ears? Would she lose them? Warmth. She needed to find the warmth, the woman with her hope and her warmth. Why did she have warmth? Was it the waters? Or the hope? She had her hope. Hope was warm. So very warm in a world so very cold. Where was it though? Where was the warmth? Could she find it? Touch it, feel it in the dark? Would it bring her the hope she sought? Hope. It was with her. The warm one. The warm one with the serious eyes...

Did the Dreadwolf seek her? The howls echoed around her. They came from a life time ago, echoed through her mind. Why did they howl? Were they lonely? Did they seek the warmth too? Did they want her hope? They couldn't have it. The hope was hers, and hers alone. She would not let hope go. She couldn't lose hope, it was all she had. Hope... hope was so warm. It waited for her in the dark, a light she sought. She sought that which was seeking. Was that hope? No. Yes. Hope. Hope was with the one that sought. Such a warm beautiful hope she sought with the one that sought...

There was yelling but it was far away. It didn't matter, not when she had to find her hope. She had been wandering forever to find it. Her hope, her soul was with the woman. She could see her face but she couldn't remember why she had her hope. She had to find her. It was all that mattered. Her hope was with the woman and it was safe there. Had to find... she stopped and stared as she saw the warm woman. She was here, she found her! Her hope was here once more. Hope... the thoughts trailed away as she hit the snow with a soft thump as Cassandra hurried to the nearly dead Irasir'in's side, a sentry and Cullen not far behind.


	11. New Beginnings

A bit of a short chapter, as is the next one. Sooooo... I decided to just post them both today. Double update! I hope you enjoy. And as always, please feel free to leave me a review. I do read those you know and they are always appreciated! As always, Italics are in Elvhen.

Chapter Ten New Beginning

Irasir'in woke slowly. She blinked at the fire light that flickered across her tent and wondered if everyone was still celebrating the closing of the Breach. Then pain rushed back to her senses, the burned feeling of healing frost bite filed in from her limbs even as her side throbbed. She stiffened a moment as memories of her staggering through the snow came back in bits and pieces, sagging as she realized she was warm again. And since she was in pain, then it was safe to say she was back with the inquisition. Anything else would have meant she died.

She slowly looked around and saw Malas fast asleep on the floor of the tent, laying on top of a bedroll with a blanket draped over her. Her smile was tired and pained as she studied her daughter, the girl must have refused to leave her side since she got back. How long ago must that have been? She wasn't sure. Slowly, with some effort and a soft groan, she sat up right. She could hear the bustle of the camp around her, but she also heard something else. Raised voices. She pushed herself to her feet and found that the gear she had had no time for earlier was stowed in the tent. She retrieved her staff and used it to walk herself outside.

She followed the sound of raised voices to find the center of the camp where Leliana, Cullens, Josephine, and Cassandra arguing. Cassandra. Her eyes fell on the human as she approached, the woman that had kept her Malas safe. She didn't know if it was possible for her to thank the Seeker enough for that. She stopped a bit away from them though, listening to the heated argument about what to do next that sounded like they had been having it for far too long. The Seeker was trying but failing to end the argument and to turn it into something more constructive. Irasir'in felt even more tired just listening to part of it.

She felt a hand placed on her shoulder and turned to see Mother Giselle standing next to her. The woman gave her a concerned look, "You should not be on your feet Herald. You were badly hurt, if not for the mage healers we have here..." The elf gave her a tired smile, "I'm fine. Nothing I haven't had to deal with before. More importantly, it sounds like those four have been going at it for some time now. I don't even see spectators around watching the show." The revered mother sighed, "They have been at it for hours now. A luxury they can afford thanks to you. The enemy could not follow, and with the time to doubt we turn to blame. In-fighting might threaten as much as this Elder One."

The elf frowned, "Do we know where the Elder...

Corypheus is?" Giselle shook her head slowly, "We do not even know where we are. Which may be why, even with the numbers he still commands, the Elder One, Corypheus you called him? Why Corypheus has not been seen. That or you are believed dead. Perhaps without Haven we are believed to be helpless, and girds for another attack. I do not claim to know the minds of that... creature. Only his affect on us." Irasir'in looked back at the arguing council, "I suppose joining that conversation without any ideas on what to do would be as pointless as the argument itself."

Mother Giselle nodded, "Indeed, perhaps especially because it is you that would be joining. Our leaders struggle because of what we survivors witnessed, we saw out defender stand and fall. Now we see her return. The more the enemy is beyond us the more miraculous your actions appear, and the more our actions appear ordained." The elf frowned, not sure sure where Giselle was going with this. The human took her look another way, "That is hard to accept no? What 'we' have been called to endure? What 'we' perhaps must come to believe?" Irasir'in sighed, "I didn't die and come back. I... escaped the avalanche." She decided that telling them she passed her body through to the veil to do so would be an unwise thing to do.

Giselle nodded, "Of course. And the dead cannot return from across the veil, but the people know what they saw. Or perhaps what they needed to see, the Maker works both in the moment and how it is remembered." Irasir'in tried not to wince at her bringing up the humans Maker. Of course they would see it as another act of their so called Herald; a title she felt increasingly uncomfortable with. She wasn't sure of what she even thought of this Maker or if she believed in him, but she knew she was no herald. Certainly was not blessed by anything. Cursed more likely than anything else. Maybe this was some sort of punishment, a burden placed upon her for leaving the temple.

Giselle continued, "Do we truly know the heavens are not with us?" Irasir'in didn't look at her, "I do not think faith and belief matters here. Corypheus is a very real and physically threat. No amount of hope, prayer, or faith will change that on their own." She hobbled closer to the others, tired eyes watching as the council sulked around the center of the camp, a darkness surrounding them. The elf hadn't even been on her feet again for an hour and she already felt the weight of everything threatening to break her back. She would tell the others what she had learned when she stood against Corypheus, and then... then what? Would she take Malas and run? Leave the Inquisition to handle its own problems... but that wouldn't really solve anything. She couldn't just leave them to their fates either, not after everything that had happened.

As she entered the central bonfire heads turned to look at her and she forced herself to stand tall. She wouldn't look broken in front of so many people. She smiled a bit bitterly at that thought, perhaps she was more like her father than she though. Proud to the point of pain. She wasn't expecting it when Mother Giselle began to sing. She was expecting it even less when people slowly trickled in to join her, first just a few people coming to see what the singing was about and then more as it spread out that she was on her feet again. She could see it in their eyes. They were really coming to see her.

The revered mother spoke as the song ended, "An army needs more than an enemy. It needs a cause." Irasir'in didn't say anything. She needed a course just as badly as the Inquisition. She knew it. But this was the third time she had nearly died since she had inexplicably found herself in the conclave. Since she had been set on the path of the Inquisition. She didn't want to leave Malas alone in this world if it came to that. As people looked to her with eyes filled with a hope, she just tried to look like her confidence in this path, this Inquisition, wasn't slowly being eroded by simple fear. She stood strong. If nothing else, than for these people that believed.

Solas slipped by and spoke softly, "A word." Before heading off to the hills beside the camp. She frowned but followed none the less. He lit a veilfire torch and turned to her, "The humans have not raised one of our people so high for ages beyond counting. The faith is hard-won, Irasir'in, worthy of pride. _"_ She stared into the dark and spoke in Elvhen, __"Hard-won and stained in blood. And easily lost I suspect."__ He frowned, __"What do you mean?"__ She looked at him, __"I met the Elder One. Corypheus he calls himself. I have seen his weapon. It is an orb. An elvhen one."__

She held up a hand to stave off questioning, __"I don't know what it does. I only vaguely know what it is. I... my clan spent a large amount of time in ancient Elvhen ruins. I saw pictures of orbs like that on murals there. I suspect they had something to do with our gods."__ Solas looked down a moment, __"It must be what he used to destroy the Conclave. Set off the explosion... we should find out how he survived it. An orb... murals in temples... it must be a foci. One used to channel power from our gods. Nothing else could be so powerful as to have ripped the veil asunder."__

Irasir'in sighed heavily, __"Of course. And when the humans learn of this, an Elvhen orb that threatens the very heart of human faith... they will blame everyone of Elvhen blood for it. I have their trust now, if that display in the camp meant anything. But what about tomorrow? I need to keep that trust."__ Solas nodded, __"Agreed. And trust cannot grow in the wilderness. You will need every advantage. By attacking the Inquisition this Corypheus has changed it. Changed you. Scout to the North; be their guide. There is a place that waits for a force to hold it; a place where the Inquisition can build, grow."__ He gestured into the dark and the path that would lay ahead of them, "Tarasyl'an Te'las. Skyhold."


	12. Tarasyl'an Te'las

Double updates! Tarasyl'an Te'las, for those interested, means The Place Where the Sky is Kept. It's the elven name for Skyhold.

Chapter Eleven Tarasyl'an Te'las

Irasir'in led the way into the abandoned fortress on tired feet. Cassandra had been chastising her for insisting on always being at the front of the march, always on her feet so soon after nearly dying. The elf had just shaken her head and led on. The Inquisition needed to see her moving under her own power, see her as unbroken. Confident and strong. It gave them hope and helped them push on. Malas helped remind her to keep her head up and her feet moving more than anything else though. She couldn't let her daughter see her weakness. Not when the girl needed her to be strong.

The fortress had been neglected for years untold, the glass long broken and the courtyard choked by weeds and wildly grown plants. The gate was rusted open, the mighty wood doors rotted. Just looking around the dilapidated stronghold filled her chest with a new weariness, an understanding that it would take a lot of work to get this place livable once again. She led the sweep of Skyhold personally, much to Cassandras continued annoyance. The elf wasn't worried though, she could feel it in her bones that this place was safe. She wasn't sure how she knew, but something about this felt familiar. Comforting even, like she was home again.

The sweep of the castle did slowly ease her concerns that the building would give out and fall on their heads though, the ancient stones held strong and solid where they had for years before. She slowly made her way up the tallest of the towers, coming out into a room where sun shine flowed in from the hole filled roof. Her feet crunched in fresh snow as she made her way to the balcony and Irasir'in found herself with a breath taking view of the fortress and the lands around it. She slowly walked the balcony with awe filled steps. Even if the rest of the castle was rubble she would accept it. This sight made it all worth it.

Once the building was secure, and once the minor panic over the massive but stable hole in the keeps dungeon subsided, they all got to work getting the place livable. Irasir'in finally allowed the Seeker to force her to relax a bit and rest. Or at least she did once the roof of the room she had claimed for her own was rebuilt. The very top of the tower quickly turned into a small living space for the elf and her daughter. She still walked the grounds and occasionally lent a hand to the workers there, she wouldn't be seen as having sat on her hands once she had what she wanted.

They had been there a week and a half when Malas sat down with her mother. She had taken more and more to speaking the common tongue, just with the almost musical quality of an Elvhen accent in it. Today Malas was giving her mother an intense and determined look, "Mother, I want my own room." Irasir'in blinked in surprise, "Oh! Well... yes I suppose that wouldn't be a problem. We do have plenty of room now... though a lot of it is still being fixed." The girl nodded seriously, "I know. I wanted to take the room on the floor right below yours. I promise to clean it and fix it all up myself! I'll do everything I need to do to live there all on my own, and won't bother anyone." The elf smiled at the girl, "There's no need for all that. Yes you will be helping, but we'll call in a couple workers to make sure the floors and stuff all ready for you. You just need to clean it and get everything ready for furniture." Malas's eyes lit up, "Really?" Irasir'in nodded, "Really." The girl squealed, "Thank you! I promise to always keep it clean and tidy! I'll clean my own fire place, and chamber pot, and sheets..." The girl chattered away on all the things she would do to keep her own room and her mother just smiled knowing she wouldn't keep half those promises without a few reminders.

Things were finally settling down and Irasir'in was doing a walk around of Skyhold. Most of it was livable now, the workers were now working on making it a place worth living in. She said quiet greetings and waved to the men and woman that she had worked beside for nearly three months getting everything together. Their greatest project had ended up being the ale house, the Herald's Rest they had insisted on naming it. She had simply sighed and let it be. The men would do what they felt was right in that regard. Even if she disapproved of it silently.

She spotted the rest of the council that ran the Inquisition gathered in quiet conversation. Cassandra waved her over and the council scattered as she arrived. Irasir'in frowned slightly at that but the Seeker started speaking as she arrived, gesturing to the small army of people going in and out of the gates, "They arrive daily from every settlement in the region. Skyhold is becoming a pilgrimage." She gave the elf a look that said for her to follow as she set off up the stairs, "If word has reached these people..." Irasir'in finished that thought, "Then the Elder One has heard as well."

Cassandra nodded, "We have the walls and numbers to put up a fight here, but this threat is far beyond the war we anticipated." The elf sighed, "It is far beyond anything anyone could have anticipated." The Seeker stopped her, "Yes but now we know what allowed you to stand against this Corypheus, what drew him to you in the first place." The elf held up her hand to look at the pulsing green glow, "The anchor. Whatever it was supposed to do, it cannot do it anymore. Still it's powerful enough to ruin his plans."

The Seeker shook her head slightly and led her on, "The anchor has power, but it is not why you are still standing here." Irasir'in snorted, "You are right. It was mostly blind luck that kept me alive. Maybe a divine joke of some sort as well." Cassandra shot her a disapproving look, "Your decisions let us heal the sky. Your determination brought us out of Haven. You are that creature's rival because of what you did. And we know it; all of us." She brought the elf up to stand in front Leliana and Irasir'in gave the blade she was presenting a suspicious look. She suddenly had a bad feeling about where this was going.

Cassandra continued, "The Inquisition requires a leader; the one who has already been leading it. From the first time we questioned what to do, before you even spoke the common tongue, you made the decisions that needed to be made." The elf felt eyes on her and she looked down to see the crowd growing in the court yard below. She hoped that the spike of terror that ran through her wasn't visible on her face. It confirmed what Cassandra was leading up to.

She had led many of the Inquisitions missions and had certainly been a tie breaker in many meetings, but to lead the Inquisition as a whole? Her father would have loved it, seeing her becoming more than a simple squad leader. Expectant eyes were glued on her, waiting for her to move, to say something. More and more Inquisition members and civilians trickled in from side doors and through the gates. She could feel their anticipation, their desire to see her as a leader. No, as the leader they already saw. The more she thought about it, the more she realized how much she had allowed them to put her forward, allowed their hesitation to motivate her to make a decision. How she had let her fathers old teachings silently come back into her mind and push her on. And now she stood cornered and left to make the decision once again. A decision that sent her heart racing with fear, excitement, and anxiety.

Cassandra stepped closer "We wish for you to lead us Irasir'in." The elf slowly turned to face her, "I... I don't know what to say." She saw a slight smile flicker on the Seekers face before she grew serious again, "Say that you will not make me regret this." The elf actually smiled a bit at that, "Afraid I'll run off with my daughter to hide from meetings in a cave again?" Cassandra gave her a dry look, "I believe this is what was meant to be, that without you there would be no Inquisition." She gestured for the elf to take approach the sword, "What it means for the future, how you lead us, that is entirely up to you."

Irasir'in's heart pounded. She looked at the Seeker a moment and then back at the sword. In the silence she heard a child's voice call out briefly before being hushed. She looked down to see Solas and Malas below her as well, her daughters eyes lit up with excitement and anticipation. Solas must have told her what was going on. Malas waved to her mother, looking giddy already. Almost like she thought Irasir'in had already agreed to it. She closed her eyes a moment and knew that there was only one answer she could give. Only one answer that her daughter would accept.

She took the sword and lifted it, studying the weapon silently. She had been taught that swords, magic, anything that could be used as a weapon should only be taken up with purpose. She studied this sword, this ornamental thing she knew wasn't meant for a battlefield. Not a weapon, but rather a symbol. Something that Cassandra was asking her to be. Something the whole Inquisition wanted her to be. Her silence dragged on till the Seeker was worried she would say no. Finally Irasir'in spoke.

"I was taught at a young age what the purpose of a weapon was. My father said it was something to be taken up for a purpose greater than yourself. Warriors are the violence, the sword and shield that stands between their families and more selfish foes. Weapons should be wielded only for a cause, and war should only be made for the greatest of good. His view on what was a greater good may have become twisted years ago, but his words have meaning beyond the ones he gave them. That is what I fight for. A purpose beyond me. A future for this world, and for my daughter."

Cassandra nodded very slowly before turning to the crowd. The elf turned with her, carrying the unbalanced and unwieldy ornate sword. She already decided she would only carry this should the others force her to. The Seeker called out, "Have our people been told?" Josephine answered, "They have! And soon, the world!" She called to Cullen next, "Commander! Will they follow?" He turned to the men calling out, "Inquisition? Will you follow?" A cheer rang out from the crow, a sound that crashed over the elf. She smiled at the enthusiasm of these people.

He continued, "Will you fight?" He lifted his hands to egg them on as the roar grew even louder. "Will we triumph?" The roar reached ever greater heights and Cullen roared to be heard over them, "Your leader! Your Herald! Your Inquisitor!" Their roar was a crescendo of sound that rolled over Irasir'in their cheers filled with a hope that sent lightning coursing through her veins. She lifted the sword high into the air, a salute to the Inquisition and a wordless acceptance of their hope. She would be what they wanted. More importantly, she would be what that tiny form that jumped and cheered down below her needed her to be. She would lead this Inquisition. And she would ensure that there would be a world for her daughter to live in safely.

Her and her council walked through the main hall of Skyhold, a place still dirty from all the work done to ensure that the place would stand. She heard the others talking but wasn't really listening. Her mind was racing, she couldn't believe she had actually agreed to that. This was far more than leading missions, helping the soldiers fight. They had put all the power into her hands and asked her to lead them in all ways. They had asked her to order these men to fight. Order them to die. All in the name of a higher calling, a purpose of protecting life as they knew it. They had turned her into something she had always dreaded becoming when she was younger. Her father.

Irasir'in quickly cast that thought aside and turned to the suddenly silent council. She knew she had missed something and quickly decided to fill the silence with another thought she had been toying with. One that she was willing to use as an excuse for having not listened to whatever it was they had said, "Could Corypheus's dragon really be an archdemon? What would that mean?" Leliana answered darkly, "It would mean the beginning of another Blight." Josephine shook her head, "We've seen no darkspawn other than Corypheus himself. Perhaps it's not an archdemon at all, but something different?"

The elf shook her head, "If it's not an archdemon, then it's still very powerful. If came to a siege here, that dragon would be what would break our backs once again. Someone out there must know something about Corypheus and his dragon." Cullen answered her, "Unless they saw him on the field, most will not believe he even exists." Leliana thought a moment, "We do have one advantage; we know what Corypheus intends to do next. In that strange future you experienced, Empress Celene had been assassinated." Josephine looked worried, "Imagine the chaos her death would cause. With his army..." Cullen continued, "An army he'll bolster with a massive force of demons, or so the future tells us."

Irasir'in started to pace, "We know the ends, but not the means. We need to learn more, find out how he's going to do these things. Who will kill the Empress, how does he get these demons? Even knowing more about Corypheus would help." The others glanced at each other but could offer no answers. It was the unexpected voice of Varric that answered them, "I know someone who can help with that." They all turned to look at him skeptically as he continued, "Everyone acting all inspirational jogged my memory, so I sent a message to an old friend. She crossed paths with Corypheus before, and may know more about what he's doing. She can help."

The elf studied him a moment, "You really think this woman can help?" Varric nodded, "I think so. Besides, it's a bit over due for her to be involved. Just come up to the battlements alright? I'll meet you there. She can help, I promise." Irasir'in nodded finally, "Alright. I'll be there once I finish up here." She gestured to the three councilors standing beside her. Varric nodded and headed out. Josephine cleared her throat, "Well then. We stand ready to move on both of these concerns." Cullen shifted forward, "On your order, Inquisitor." Irasir'in nodded and found that title didn't make her wince like herald did. At least she had earned this one.

Leliana spoke up, "I know one thing. If Varric has brought who I think he has, Cassandra is going to kill him." The elf sighed, "Sounds like another fight I'll have to break up later." She slipped out, leaving the others with instructions to get things ready for them to move out. Where ever it was they were going to end up that is. She emerged back into the courtyard, the members of the Inquisition she saw saluting her as they noticed her passage. She smiled a bit and waved them off. She might be in charge, but she never did like formalities. She took the steps that led up to the battlements and the dwarf waiting on them. Time for her to find out who Varric had called in to help.


	13. A Hawke and Home

Chapter Twelve A Hawke and Home

Irasir'in leaned against the battlements next to Varric, "So tell me Varric, who is this mystery person? You sure they can help?" The dwarf chuckled, "Sure she can. She knows more about Corypheus than anyone else." He turned as they heard foot steps on the stairs behind them. The elf frowned, the footfalls sounded deliberate. Like they were meant to be heard. She turned to see a slight woman coming down the steps, sharp eyes the color of steel looking her over from under an unruly mop of red hair. She was wearing light armor that made no sound as she moved and looked well worn. The armor was made of a tough looking material that the elf couldn't identify on sight. Varric smiled, "Inquisitor, I would like you to meet Rosalyn Hawke. Champion of Kirkwall."

Hawke sighed, "Never did like that title and all the expectations that came with it. Dropped it as soon as I could." Varric shook his head, "Well Hawke, this is Inquisitor Irasir'in. I thought you might have some friendly advice on Corypheus." The woman twitched at the name before smiling at the elf, "It is a pleasure to meet you Inquisitor. Varric has told me quite a bit about you in his letters." Irasir'in bowed her head slighting, "It is a pleasure to meet the Champion of Kirkwell as well. Varric speaks of you often." Hawke laughed, "I hope he hasn't told you too much. I would rather you think better of me than that." The elf laughed and Varric sighed.

"Look, I just thought you could help her. I know you, Daisy, and Sunshine fought him after all." Hawke sighed at that and walked past them to go look over the courtyard. Irasir'in exchanged a look with Varric before following her. She studied the place, "I use to love looking over the city of Kirkwall. Most people would tell you the view from my balcony was wonderful. I preferred the one from my roof personally. I spent a lot of sun sets up there, watching the colors cascade over the city and the sun light sparkle on the water as it slowly faded away. I miss it some times, that view. One of the few things I miss about that city. That wonderful and damned city."

Irasir'in slowly leaned on the battlement, "I... understand that feeling. I miss the view of... of the forest from my own home. I did not get to see it all that often. But when I found a chance to sneak away, I always took it. I climbed to the top of the tallest tree I could find and watched many sun sets. Some times I would wait out the night there and watch the sun rise as well. My father was always angry when I did that." Hawke laughed, "My mother scolded me all the time as well. Use to say I would break my neck falling from up there. Only fell once though. I got drunk enough to see double and went up there after a... very difficult day. Broke my arm. Merrill helped me with it, set the arm and gave the healing a bit of a push. She isn't much of a healer but she always tries her hardest to help."

Irasir'in smiled a bit and nodded. There was a long silence before Hawke spoke again, "We didn't just fight Corypheus. We killed him. He had been imprisoned by the Wardens but he was some how influenced them through the taint in their blood. Put thoughts in their minds, sent them to war against each other. I hear that the Wardens have vanished from the lands. It's possible he might be controlling them, or at least altering their perceptions into his favor." The elf chewed on her lip a moment, "Can we free them?" Hawke shrugged, "Maybe. We need to learn more before we can say for sure. I have a friend in the Wardens, someone I met through my sister. He's been poking around about something else for me. His name's Stroud. Last time I saw him he was worried about corruption in the Wardens. I get the feeling he meant something more mundane but I haven't heard from his since then so..."

Irasir'in thought a moment, "Corypheus would count as corruption if he can control their minds... did he vanish with the rest of the Wardens?" Hawke shook her head, "Nah. He was hiding in a smuggler's cave near Crestwood, an old one that doesn't see much use as I recall." Varric snorted, "And how would you know anything about some distant smuggler's cave?" Hawke flashed him a smile, "Girl has to have some hobbies you know." He shook his head and Irasir'in quirked an eyebrow, "Interesting hobbies?" Rosalyn waved it off, "Look, what's important is that he might still be there. If nothing else it might lead us to him." The elf nodded, "Alright. I'll take a look. Thank you for coming to speak with me." The woman waved it off, "It's fine. Merrill was looking forward to seeing her favorite dwarf again anyway." Varric laughed, "You brought Daisy along? I would have thought you would have her squirreled away somewhere safe." Hawke snorted, "She's a big girl. She can handle herself. Besides..." She looked embarrassed, "I didn't really want to stay away from her for so many weeks." The dwarf raised an eyebrow, "Hawke, do you get lonely when you're not with her?" She blushed, "Shut up you hairy excuse for a nug." Varric laughed, "Oh now that I am adding to my-" Hawke shot him a death glare, "If you add that to any books, stories, or songs I will shave your chest hair off while you sleep." Varric just laughed louder.

Irasir'in smiled at them as they started to trade quips and the group slowly started drifting in the direction of the tavern. After awhile the elf bowed out quietly, having mostly been forgotten anyway. The champion of Kirkwall had been different than what she had expected. Maybe she had listened to the stories about her a bit too much and had really expected some grand hero. Varric certainly had painted her to be a lot larger than the woman vanishing into the tavern with the dwarf. Irasir'in wondered quietly what sort of stories he would tell about her. She wondered how much of it he would even have to embellish considering how mad her life was already becoming.

She made her way up to the walk ways above the garden, the over grown weeds were steadily being tamed by a few garden workers, a few workmen were working to repair the small gazebo and walls here as well. Life was busy in Skyhold, and she had no doubt that it would stay that way for some time. She spotted the real reason she had come up on these walls, smiling down when she saw Malas helping a gardener do her work. The girl had latched on to the work readily, and seemed happy with the idea that she was helping grow flowers in the castle. That everything in the garden would also have an herbal recipe to go with it didn't matter to the girl so long as she got to see flowers.

She was still up there when she heard familiar footsteps heading up the stairs. Heavy boots hitting the stone solidly, but not accompanied by the sounds of armor that came with boots like those. She didn't move from her spot as those footsteps pushed their way onto the battlements and paused. She mused at the pause, not expecting to see anyone up here? Or simply not expecting to see her? Was she waiting to see if I noticed her? The owner of those booted feet seemed to make up their mind, the door shutting as they headed her way. Not stomping as hard now. She spoke without looking at her, "Good afternoon Cassandra."

The Seeker stopped and frowned at her, "How did you know it was me?" Irasir'in smiled, "Magic obviously." Or that there was a limited number of people she knew that wore heavy boots like those outside of their armor. Most had a pair of softer boots for just walking around. The elf wondered if Cassandra owned more than one pair of boots at all. The Seeker snorted and leaned next to her, eyes quickly picking out Malas. "Spying on your daughter?" Irasir'in laughed, "You make it sound bad, but yes I am spying on her. It's nice to see her like this, happy and helping others. I never liked how little time she has had to spend with people other than me, I feel like it's important for her growth as a person to meet new people and make friends. Helps her understand people better."

Cassandra nodded in agreement, "She has plenty of people to talk to now. But I am concerned about leaving her alone with them." Irasir'in set her head in her hand, "Leliana has agents keeping an eye on her. I have caught them spying on her and on me many times, at first I went to her about it but now I am glad she has them following Malas. I feel better about her roaming Skyhold so freely knowing they're there, and she can have her fun and adventures away from me safely." The Seeker nodded thoughtfully, "Yes I suppose she does always seem to have eyes on you now. Worried about losing our Inquisitor I suppose." The elf smiled, "She doesn't always have eyes on me. I had actually lost my tail before coming up here. I get the feeling they may have found me again though."

Cassandra smiled and shook her head. There was a pause before she said carefully, "I hear Varric has brought in a visitor to see you. Did you already meet them?" Irasir'in remembered Lelianas words and thought a moment before answering, "Yes, and it looks as though the conversation may lead us to some answers." The Seeker studied her, "Who was it?" The elf glanced at her before looking down at Malas and watched as another elf she didn't know came over and joined her by the flower she was tending. The woman looked to be Dalish if the clothes and Vallaslin were anything to go by. She studied the woman intently as she started to talk to her daughter, "Do you know that elf down there?" Cassandra peered down and scowled, "I do. Her name is Merrill and last I knew she was missing along with her lover. Hawke. Damn it, Varric lied to me!" Her hands gripped the railing tight.

Irasir'in studied her, "Why were you looking for her?" Cassandra took a deep breath, "We needed someone to lead the Inquisition. First we thought of the Hero of Ferelden, but he had vanished while chasing the witch Morrigan. Then we looked for Hawke and she was gone as well. We had thought it was connected... but no. No it was just that cursed dwarf!" The elfs face became a carefully neutral mask, "And then you would have a hero as your leader instead of me." Cassandra stopped, "That's... not what I meant. If we had found Hawke, if Varric hadn't lied about being able to find her, then she would have been at the Conclave. If anyone could have saved Most Holy..."

Irasir'in breathed out slowly, "Cassandra, the Conclave is not Varrics fault. No one could have known that was going to happen." She shook her head, "He is a liar and a snake. Even after the Conclave he kept her secret, kept her away when we needed her most. He has never cared about the Inquisition, never been on our side." The elf shook her head, "You know that's not true. He could have left from the start, you even demanded he leave. Then his lies would never have been known. But he not only stayed but outed himself. He must know that there would be consequences for this." Cassandra made a frustrated noise and paced for a few seconds before finally coming to a stop and leaning to look down into the garden again, "He did... bring Hawke to us. Late as it was. And we still have you."

Irasir'in let the silence linger till Cassandra broke it again, "I believed him Irasir'in. He spun his story and I swallowed it. If I'd just explained what was at stake, made him understand... but I didn't, did I? I didn't explain why we needed Hawke. I... I am such a fool." The elf put a hand on her shoulder, "You are many things, but fool is not one of them. I have to ask, what would you have done if you hadn't listened to Varric and tracked her down?" The Seeker sighed, "Honestly, if what I have learned of her is true then she would have refused. She supported the rebellion from the start, and would never have trusted me. But... this isn't about Hawke. Or Varric for that matter. I should have been more careful, smarter. I..." She was silently for awhile before hanging her head, "I don't deserve to be here."

Irasir'in stiffened and gave her a serious look, "Never speak like that again Cassandra. You are being far too hard on yourself, you have done nothing but what you thought was best from the very beginning." The Seeker shook her head, "I don't think I've been hard enough." The elf touched her face and drew her head over to look her in the eye properly, "You have done more than anyone could be asked to do, without anyone asking it." The Seeker took in a deep breath before slowly letting it out. There was another silence as the two woman watched Malas drag the now fumbling Merrill along through the garden. Some how Irasir'in wasn't surprised. Her daughter had a habit of sweeping people up in her wake. Finally Cassandra spoke again, "I want you to know that I do not regrets. Maybe... maybe if we had found Hawke or the Hero of Ferelden, then the Maker would not have had to send you. But he did; I don't know how all this will end, but I would have it no other way."

The silence that followed dragged on until Cassandra pushed herself up right to leave and Irasir'in spoke, "I lied to you Cassandra." The Seeker stopped and slowly looked back as the elf continued, "You asked me once if I missed my home. I lied. I miss it more than anything else. The wind blowing through the trees. The sun light breaking through the foliage and touching my face after waking from a long sleep. I always went on the extended patrols, always insisted on being outside of the temple we lived in. And the temple... it was beautiful. Filled with murals and statues, gold, silver, and gemstones adorning the walls. A place of dark mystery and ancient knowledge that was starkly contrasted to the bright living world that streamed in from stain glass windows and through holes in the ceiling. The forest had taken it back in places, massive trees growing up through the stone."

Cassandra leaned against the railing next to her, listening intently as she kept going, "I love my home Cassandra. It was my life and my light. Everything to me. I never wanted to admit it but I love it more than the man that fathered my daughter. But losing it was the price to keeping Malas. And from the moment I knew I was pregnant, I knew I would give it all up for her. I would give up everything I knew, everything I loved, everything I had for her. To this day I do not regret it Cassandra. I miss that home and those hateful people so much that it hurts, but Malas... she is my hope. My hope for a future outside of that ancient, forgotten, and spiteful place of beauty."

The Seeker watched the woman for a time before, "Why lie about missing them?" The elf laughed a little bitterly, "Because they stripped me of my place among them. Took the armor and weapons I earned with my own two hands and cast me out as an exile. I should hate them for it. I should hate that place and the ancient grudges and willful xenophobia they have. I should hate them, but all I can do is wish to see my father again. To see my brothers and sisters, to spar with them once more..." She shook her head, "I lied because I want to lie to myself as well. But I'm finding it more and more difficult to do so with each passing year. I love my home even as I hate it. I suppose that's the curse of it being home isn't it?"

Cassandra stood beside her in silence for awhile, "Will you tell me about her father?" The elf blinked, "What?" The Seeker shifted sideways, "Malas's father. Will you tell me about him? What kind of man he was?" Irasir'in stared at her a moment before laughing and relaxing, "Sure. Hmmm where to start? Well I suppose the best place to start... is how we met." She took a deep breath, "It all started when I went out on an extended patrol. It was summer and we needed to gather meat and fruit to eat. There was plenty to be found near by, but my father was worried about us being spotted. When I met him, he was wandering lost and alone in the woods..."

A/N: See you next week everyone!


	14. The Past and The Present

A/N: Sorry for the lack of post last week. I had massive writers block followed by a couple very busy weeks that involved a lot of failed job seeking. This is also the fourth time I've written this, so hopefully this one is better than the last three I wrote and scraped. I hope you guys enjoy this chapter and I'll try and get a second one out today to make up for the lack of one last week. And thanks to all of you who have reviewed, and for those haven't don't be shy. Feel free to do so!

Chapter Thirteen The Past and Present

Ten Years Before

She stood in the branches of the tree, looking out over the forest in front of her. A world filled with light and life that marched on through time. Her father had told her stories when these woods were filled with cities, spires reaching high to touch the sky. How they had risen upon bones of magic and stone, a great empire where the elves stood as kings and gods above the lesser races. He told her tales of their majesty, their glory, and above all else their arrogance. An arrogance that had brought them crashing to the ground. It was something she would remember her whole life, the pride and bitterness that he spoke of their people with. He told her of their rise, their glory, and their fall.

She enjoyed the days she spent outside of the Temple more than any others. A freedom from those walls that stood tall but ever crumbling around them. She knew her brothers and sisters would never leave. Not so long as they still had a duty that held them there. They slept away eternity, only a handful of them awake to watch, to listen, to keep the others alive. They were the eternal guardians of Mythal and the Well of Sorrow, a proud people from the last true Elvhen. They were proud, strong, and never ending. And Irasir'in stared at the world around them wondering if she should just leave and never come back.

Some where deep inside her she knew she wouldn't. She would return to the Temple come night fall, pray beside the others, eat and feed the sleepers, and then rest so that she might do so again the next day. A routine she had held for so long that she felt her mind going numb from it. Years upon never ending years passed and the greatest meaning she had found in it all was small rebellion. Spending the odd night out in the forest. Sneaking into the woods beyond just to see something new. Hunting the odd passerby, never hurting or killing them as her training said she should but instead simply following them. Watching them, studying them, silently creating stories of their lives inside her head. This was one such day, she had found a group of armed men wandering and had decided they were bandits. Men that plundered and pillaged their ways across the world.

It made her smile to think of that sort of life, a life free from the constraints of society. They did what they wanted, when they wanted. They ate and drank with joy, they gathered gold and spent it like water. Maybe they bought whores to fill the lonely nights with companionship. She romanticized them with images of glory and joy even as she knew that if they were bandits, then they were probably the scum of the land; but she would rather think better of these strangers than that. It made her feel better to think of people being good until proven otherwise. Even if they were simply Shem. She spent so much time following them and silently writing stories about them in her head that she didn't notice the time until it started getting dark. She checked around her and realized there was no way she could get back to the temple in time. So she didn't bother trying, instead slipping into the dark to find a place to spend the night.

She greeted the dawn with a prayer to Mythal. She had been up for a couple hours already and had finished her morning exercises. She ate a cold breakfast before heading out to the nearest river. This place was rather far from the temple but she had been in this part of the woods many times in the past. One of the benefits of having lived for so long was knowing the land better than any Shemlin could, these trees and rivers were ancient and slow to change.

Magic soaked into the land as well, ancient and powerful magic that only those attuned to it could feel. Magic of the ancient elvhen and their gods. Her magic. She stripped out of her light armor and carefully set aside her weapons, a silverite long sword and a bow. She had never been particularly good at casting traditional spells, but her training as an arcane swordsman made up for it nicely. She washed her self in the shallows before she slipped into the deepest part of the river and took a deep breath before plunging down.

The water was ice cold, but after the exercises she had done it was nice. Most importantly it was quiet, the world around her was shut off by the water. Here all there was was her and the soothing noise of flowing water. Just fast enough to be safe for her to bathe in, just slow enough that it only took minimal effort to stay in one place. She stayed down for a long while, waiting until her lungs burned for air before allowing need to push her to the surface in an explosion of water and a deep gasp of breath. She grinned as fresh clean air filled her lungs. The forest always was her favorite place, where she was alone and time hadn't filled it with the smell of age and dust.

Thus it was a surprise when she heard someone make a confused noise. She froze and slowly turned to find a man watching her. He had dark brown hair and green eyes, an unfamiliar Vallaslin running across his face. He had a small blade on his belt and a bow on his back. And she was naked. They stared at one another unmoving until his face turned a deep red and he spun around, yelling something in a language she didn't understand. Still, she took the opportunity to hurry back to the other shore and her gear. She hurriedly grabbed her sword without bothering with the armor and spun around, "Who are you? Identify yourself!"

The elf turned to look at her but spun back around, his face still that same bright red and yelling in broken Elvhen, all she caught was something about a shirt. She paused and looked down at her clothes and back at him. And suddenly felt like a fool as she realized that if he was an enemy, or even looking to take advantage of her nakedness, he already would have tried to do something. She blushed and sheathed her sword before pulling on her pants and undershirt. When she had them on she composed herself and called over, "You can turn around." He peaked at her before taking a breath and turning to face her as she pulled on her boots and armor.

She felt him watching her as she strapped on her chest piece before sighing, "Are you just going to watch me or say something?" He hesitated and seemed to be thinking deep before carefully answering, "I am sorrow. I no mean see you clothes off." Irasir'in stopped and stared at him a moment before she snorted and smirked, "Well if that isn't some bad elvhen." He looked offended, "I am first of keeper! I elvhen good." She held up her hands, "Sorry. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, I just haven't heard anyone speak... well like that. I apologize. My name is Irasir'in, who are you?" He paused a moment before bowing to her, "My name is Lath'in."

She smiled, it sounded more like a girls name to her. That meant it was probably something the Dales had called him, if what those assigned to the scying pools said was true. Another shemlin... her smile was gone, he was a shemlin. A shemlin that had seen her too. She finished buckling on her sword as her mind raced. He hadn't done anything, not really. She had made the mistake here, she should have just left once she had bathed and returned to the Temple, or better never have stayed the night in the first place. There was no reason he should have to die for that.

She was contemplating this when he spoke again in the odd language. She shook her head, "I don't know what you're saying. I don't speak... whatever language that is." He frowned a moment before shaking his head and speaking in careful and broken elvhen, "My way is lost. I no see clearings or landships of clan." She blinked, "Land ships?" He nodded vigorously, clearly misunderstanding as he asked, "You see landships where? Near?" She blinked and shook her head, "Sorry no, I haven't seen your landships..." She paused as his face fell and he said something. There was a pause before he shook his head and bowed to her, "Thank you. And I am sorrow again for see no clothes. Must go landships."

He turned and started leaving. She bit her lip as she watched him leave. She should kill him. Or just leave him and go back to the temple. He was walking towards a giants nest after all so it would take care of her problem perfectly. But he was walking blind into it, just looking to get home to his clan... She found herself moving before she knew what she was doing, calling after him, "Wait!" He stopped and looked back at her confused, "You're walking straight into a giants nest." He stared at her and she sighed and mimed something being very tall before saying, "Giant. Tall death. Eats people. Giant." He blinked and rolled the unfamiliar word around in his mouth and repeated it back before it seemed to click and he said what she assumed was his word for it, "Yes. Giant."

He hesitated, "Giant way?" She nodded and said it slower, "Yeeees there's a giant that way." He looked uneasy before turning to go another way, "Much thanks, not go giant." She sighed, "Wait. I can't just leave you wandering." He stopped and looked at her confused. She rolled her eyes, "I go with you. Show shemlin way out of dangerous woods." He blinked at her, "Shemlin?" She hesitated before she just shrugged, "Just... tell me what you remember of where you last saw your damn landships."

Now

"Took me the entire day to work out from his broken, half forgotten elvhen where the Aravels were. Apparently he had been looking for something like a wolf or some such to kill, bring its pelt back to a girl he fancied. And all I got out of it was another night in the forest and a tongue lashing when I got home." Cassandra gave her an odd look and Irasir'in raised an eyebrow, "What? Were you expecting something exciting? A great tale of romance? I could make things up if you like, toss in some bandit fights, wolves, maybe dragon?"

The Seeker shook her head, "No no, I just... I'm not sure. I suppose that after everything you've done, all these miracles you seem to do, I was expecting it to be... more. Something like the stories I've read." Irasir'in laughed, "You read romance novels?" Cassandra blushed as she realized what she said, "N-no! I-I mean I've seen a few, things other people left around and... and..." She sighed, "Oh Maker. Yes I do read romance novels. But there's a lot of people that do! It's nothing to be ashamed of."

The elf grinned, "Not at all. But not a lot of people read the ones that they feel the need to immediately try to pretend they don't. What -have- you been reading that would make you blush so miss Seeker?" She glared at the elf, "Nothing." Irasir'in laughed, "Oh I bet it's good. Let me guess, you read the smutty ones. Oh don't think I've kept my studies of the common tongue just to professional business, Varric has lent me plenty of interesting stories. Some of his own serials as well. Personally, my favorite is actually Swords and Shields bad as that is."

Cassandras eyes widened, "You... you read them? And you enjoyed them?" Irasir'in laughed, "I did indeed on both accounts. They're terrible I know, and I'm sure a lady such as yourself wouldn't read such things, but call them the guiltiest of pleasures." There was a pause before Cassandra grabbed her arm, "You cannot tell anyone this but... I love them too." The elf stared at her a moment before laughing all the harder, "Wow Cassandra. I did not see that coming. Not that I'm disappointed, it will be nice to have someone to discuss the story with. Or at least what there is of it. I haven't heard Varric say anything about working on it lately..."

Cassandra chewed on her lip, "He has to be working on it. I know it. Maybe... maybe if you ordered him to finish it!" She stopped and shook her head, "No. No no that is too much. You cannot let Varric know I read it. After what he has done, he does not deserve the satisfaction of that." Irasir'in sighed, "Alright. That's fair enough I guess." There was quiet for awhile before the elf spoke again, "You know, real romance doesn't always come where you expect it to. Some times it wanders blindly lost to the river your bathing in. Some times it comes quietly and slowly from someone closer. And on rare occasions it comes glaring at you from across a sparring room as they're trying to beat you senseless."

Cassandra frowned, "What?" Irasir'in sighed, "When I was younger I had a bit of a rival. More of someone that bullied me nonstop really. Hartha'sal. Every time we were put into the sparring ring together, I could expect a real fight. She could not stand me it seemed." The Seeker shifted, "She?" The elf nodded, "Yes she. She pushed me harder than anyone else, constantly going out of her way to bother me and being more violent than anyone else I trained with. She wouldn't stop until the trainers made her, and honestly neither did I. I always lost, but I made sure it wasn't because I gave up and she knew it. Went on for years until the first time I beat her. The look on her face... I was sure she was going to have a heart attack, she looked so mad. That night when I was cleaning up she came into the washing room. I was expecting her to attack me when she first got in. I wasn't expecting her to kiss me. To this day I do not know why I kissed her back, or why we had spent so long trying to kill each other in the ring. I guess it's just... one of those things you do when you're young that just doesn't make sense when you grow up."

Cassandra slowly nodded and watched the garden below them. Irasir''in finally pushed herself upright, "You know I don't regret anything. I don't regret kissing Hartha'sal or the years we spent together as lovers. I don't regret saving Lath'in from whatever fate awaited him in the woods, even if in the end it's what killed him. Because I found love and didn't let it slip away. Taking chances is how we grow as people, and how we can enjoy our lives to the fullest I think. Change is a good thing you know?" Cassandra nodded in silent agreement. The elf studied her a moment before sighing, "I'm going to head down to Malas. I'll see you later Cassandra." The Seeker looked at her and nodded, "Have a good afternoon Irasir'in." The elf walked down the stairs, wondering if she had laid it on a bit thick at the end there. But what was said was said, and all she could do was hope that her words had the desired impact. She emerged from the stairwell and heard Josephine call her name. At least she would be kept busy till she found out.


	15. The Dragon

Chapter Fourteen The Dragon

Irasir'in put her head in her hands silently. It had been a long day and didn't look to be getting shorter. An endless parade of paperwork had passed over her desk, reports, requisition forms, expenditures she needed to approve, troop deployments... the Templar were keeping quiet for now. Staying in the shadows. She was fine with the break, but it encouraged Josephine to find her work. That she was less enthused with. After hours of being cooped up in her office she finally broke. She had to go do something before she fell asleep from boredom. She headed down the stairs in a hurry, if she was fast enough then no one would notice she vanished till she was gone. A couple close calls of Josephine and Cullen passing by far too close she was out.

She went straight to the stables and retrieved a horse. She wasn't the best rider in the world, but her sense of balance let her get by for a sedate ride across the lands around Skyhold. A little rank pulling at the gate and she was free. For the first time in a week she was alone. No. Not a week. Longer than that. Much longer. She couldn't count the time spent freezing to death in the mountains, so this was the first free and real alone time since Malas had been born. A fraction of her life, but one that felt more full than the entirety of the rest. She soaked in the pleasant, peaceful silence and relaxed. Two hours into her ride she found something that made her smile. Hotsprings. Such a rarity, she couldn't believe her luck finding another after the one at Haven had been buried.

She glanced around, nothing but wide empty land. Maybe just a quick dip... she left the horse grazing not too far away, and carefully hung her clothes from a near by tree to keep them clean. She slipped into the spring and sighed slowly and heavily. This was just what she needed. Peaceful silence. She must have dozed because she was stirred into alertness only when she heard her horse whiny to another as hasty hoof beats arrived. She considered climbing out until she heard a familiar voice call her name. She sighed and just sat back, "Over here Cassandra. The Seeker stormed over, "Inquisitor, what were you thinking runnnnn your naked. You ran off to bathe in a hot spring! Do you have any idea how worried we were when we heard you ran off alone!"

The elf shrugged, "I'm sure you're going to tell me." Cassandra glared at her, "Of course I am. You are our leader, you cannot just run away like this. What would we do if you got hurt or worse? And really? Naked in a hot spring? What if someone else saw this? What would they think?" Irasir'in sighed slowly, "Probably wouldn't be as outraged as you. Most would be thankful even." The Seeker sputtered, "Thankful!?" The elf stood and put her hands on her hips, "Yes thankful. Because they would be admiring the view."

Cassandra glowered at her silently and Irasir'in sighed, "Sorry. I'm just... I'm tired Cassandra. I haven't had any time to myself in years, constantly moving and worrying about Malas even before the Inquisition. Now I'm running the Inquisition, meeting dignitaries, mountains of paperwork... sending out troops to potentially die. Who knows how many men and woman have died because I sighed off on marching orders, and it's still early on. This fight, this war? It's not going to end any time soon. I am going to order so many to die fighting in this, and telling myself it's necessary... that doesn't make it easier. I am tired Cassandra. I just... wanted a moment of peace."

Cassandras face softened, "You... you could be more cautious at least. Even if you are a mage, you aren't safe on your own. You have a lot of enemies, and being alone out here is dangerous." Irasir'in nodded, "Yeah... yeah I know, and you're right. But hey, you're here now! So I'm not out here on my own now am I?" The Seeker snorted and shook her head, "I suppose not. We should head back though." The elf shifted in the water, "In a minute or two. I just want to soak in the quiet for a minute longer." Cassandra studied her a moment before nodding, "Alright. But only for a bit longer, Cullen and Josephine are worried about where you are."

The two of them headed back to Skyhold in a comfortable silence and arrived to much fuss from Cullen and Jose. She quickly found herself being shadowed by Lelianas agents and had a small guard that was less subtly following on her heels. She was mildly annoyed by her new entourage but accepted it if a bit reluctantly. She arranged for a new set of armor to be made, getting some fairly high quality material but was disappointed that she couldn't get any silverite but there was some sort of supply issue with one of the largest mines. She already sent troops to investigate the issue. Another week passed and she finally found an excuse to return to the field and took it.

The foothills were far quieter than Irasir'in remembered them being. There were no Templar calling for the Maker to smite her where she stood. No spells being chanted. No cries for help, no bandits. She would call it a peaceful day if it wasn't for the animals being gone too, turning the forest from quiet peace to deathly silence. They had had reports from terrified villagers flowing in for days, telling them of smoke on the breeze, roars in the sky, missing livestock and game animals. They claimed there was a dragon, but the scout squad they had sent out to investigate went missing. That worried her more than all the rest combined.

At that moment they were creeping through the hills near an old bandit camp, a location where they had set up an Inquisitional outpost that had gone quiet not long after the missing scouts had set out. She was worried for all their safety, and the smell of smoke and burnt meat was not comforting her. When they did round the bend to find the camp, her worst fears were confirmed. The camp was burned to the ground and she could see the burnt corpses of horses and men that had tried to flee. Either this was the work of a dragon for a pack of rage demons. She wasn't sure which she would prefer to find.

Ironbull and Cassandra swept forward, looking for signs of survivors or enemies. Irasir'in knew that they wouldn't find any, if it was rage demons then they would already be under attack, and any survivors would have already fled the place. She stopped at the center of the camp and slowly looked around in silence. Inquisition troops secured the area and bustled about to see what could be salvaged from the burned camp.

The Seeker approached the elf, "Inquisitor. I spoke with Solas, and according to him this place was likely burned by dragon fire. He claims to have smelled it before, but we can't be truly certain." Irasir'in nodded slowly as she watched a pair of soldiers carrying a body out of a tent, "I thin-" She was interrupted by a far too close roar that shook the cliffs around them. The silence that followed was ringing and filled with a horrified anticipation. Finally she spoke softly, "Cassandra, I think that was the confirmation we needed." The Seeker nodded as Irasir'in stood taking a deep breath before her voice rang out, "Inquisition! I want a runner sent back to the main camp, tell them what happened to this camp and get a message out to Skyhold. I want scouts on the move further into the quarry, find the beast. Everyone else on me! We're going to put this monster down!"

The troops didn't hesitate, scrambling to obey her orders. Scouts hurried ahead while the swordsmen got into formation. Cassandra didn't look as enthused by the concept, "Inquisitor, this is unwise. We aren't equipped to be fighting a dragon, it will be a slaughter." Irasir'in shook her head, "We can win, if we fight smart. Which is why me, you, and Ironbull are going to keep her attention as best we can. The primary job of the troops is going to be taking out the dragons wings, bring her to the ground with arrows. Once she's down we engage directly and kill her ourselves."

She frowned, not looking convinced. The elf pushed on, leading the troops into the quarry proper. They put down a few young dragons at the start when they got their first look at the dragon herself. She was glorious in flight, elegant and powerful. Her scales glittered in the sun and she looked beautiful. That beauty became terrible when she came roaring in with fire spewing from her mouth. The Inquisition troops scattered for cover. All but Irasir'in herself, she would put her new shield to its test.

She knelt behind her shield and sent magic coursing through it and her armor, the shield glowing bright against the dragons fire that slammed into it. She gritted her teeth as she felt the heat on her skin, a burn started to spread across her skin before the fire was gone in a flash. She gasped and spun, sending a surge of power back at the dragon to send a spike of ice out to slam into her hide. The dragon roared it's rage and the Inquisition troops stared at her a moment. She called out, "Archers draw your bows! Swordsmen, form a shield wall before them! Bring her down!" There was a roar of approval from the troops as they formed up. The dragon came back around and her eyes latched onto the defiant elf standing tall.

The dragon came roaring back in, fire filling her mouth. Irasir'in roared back, throwing another ice spell at the dragon before bringing her shield forward once again. Fire slammed into her again, pain rushing across her body as the intense heat washed over her. The rush of the flames filled her ears, and she felt her hair curling on her head. The smell of burning hair filled her nose and she felt the blisters starting. When the fire passed again she had to force herself to her feet and attacked the dragon again. She felt healing magic wash over her from Solas and saw that the dragon had several arrows in her hide. She threw spells after the dragon and the dragon came back around.

This time the dragon didn't simply go after her, instead dragging her fire across both her and the troops. Irasir'in could do nothing more than brace herself against the burns she felt spreading across her skin that grew ever deeper. She felt her hair burned close to her scalp, blisters covering her shield arm. When the fire broke she threw spells at the dragons wings, between the arrows and spells they had shredded those wings and the dragon came crashing down to the earth. She rose grimly, glancing over at the now decimated ranks of the Inquisition. Even with the shield wall, they couldn't stand against dragon fire without the same magics that kept Irasir'in standing.

She gripped the hilt of her blade tighter and stormed forward as the dragon hauled herself to her feet. The beast roared at them and Irasir'in found herself roaring back along side Ironbull as they attacked. Blades flashed and was spilled into the soil. She ducked flashing teeth and struck back hard. She felt pain flare along her side when she missed a claw but returned the blow viciously. She wasn't paying attention to the fight as a whole anymore, she concentrated on avoiding blows and returning them. Half her blows were deflected harmlessly off scales, but as she poured magic into her blade it bit deep even as the effort and wounds drained her.

The ground shook as the dragon roared in rage and fire spewed across the battlefield, she ducked behind her shield and felt herself screaming in answer as well. What had she been thinking coming out here? She was standing against a dragon, something she could have formed a proper hunting party to kill, for what? Pride? To make sure no one else fell to it? To avoid her duties as Inquisitor? As she broke from the cover of her shield she saw flashes of Malas pass before her eyes. She shouldn't have come out for this. What would Malas think if she found out her mother died like this? This wouldn't keep her daughter safe like stopping Corypheus. A stupid risk.

The dragons tail whipped around and crashed into her chest, sending her flying back to collide with the quarry wall. She could barely feel it. She knew that was bad. When she tried to push herself to her feet and couldn't, she knew that was worse. It was hard to breath and the world grew dark. She wondered who would miss her if she died her. Malas of course. Would the others? Would Cassandra? The world grew dark and she grew tired. Maybe it would be better if she just... took a little nap.

Cassandra and Ironbull stood panting next to the corpse of the massive dragon. The fight had been hard and many soldiers had died, but at least the dragon was finally down. Which meant it was time to worry about more important things. Like their wounded. Cassandra scanned the burned and blood soaked quarry looking for the Inquisitor. She asked troops and most said they had lost sight of her once the dragon had come crashing down, saying only that she had been seen charging in. Her concern was mounting ever higher when she finally caught sight of the elf and her heart dropped to the pit of her stomach. She ran to the unconscious elf and called for the healer. She saw blood seeping from the elfs side and tore off part of her sleeve, using the clothe to staunch the bleeding as best she could till the mages arrive. And silently prayed to the Maker it would be in time.


	16. Stars and Scars

A/N: Sorry that I've been so long in posting the latest chapter. I've been very busy getting a lot of things done trying to find a job and with just general life that it fell to the back burner until recently. If I don't post another chapter by tomorrow night then don't expect to see it till the week after next since I'll be in Disney for a family vacation and much needed stress relief from a lot of failed job hunting. Still I will not let this story die! That said, I look forward to seeing all again, whenever that ends up being! Till next time guys.

Chapter Fifteen Stars and Scars

Irasir'in woke up with her body throbbing. She wasn't surprised, but she didn't know why. At least until she remembered the dragon, the fight, and the fire. The world was dark and it took her a moment to realize that it was just because her eyes were closed. It took her a few moments longer to pry them open and wince at the candle light. It might have been dim, but it still burned her eyes. She blinked rapidly as she got use to the light and squinted around the room. She was in Skyhold if the stones and magic that filled them told her anything, and she could only assume this room had been picked for her to be taken care of in while healing. Her eyes landed on a chairs next to her bed and she smiled weakly at the sight.

Cassandra sat there dozing, oblivious to the world, and Malas was sleeping with her head resting on the bed. She wondered silently how long she had been asleep, but she guessed it wasn't long enough if the pain was any indicator. She slowly tested to make sure she could still move everything, and was pleased when she found everything was still working, even if it was painful and stiff to do so. She relaxed and watched the sleeping pair tiredly.

After awhile Solas arrived and paused when he saw her awake. He looked over at the other two before walking over closer and speaking softly, "They spent the last couple days in here. Cassandra said she's making sure that no enemy agents kill you when you're stuck in bed from wounds. Ironbull is outside the door for the same reason." Irasir'in sighed and whispered hoarsely, "Of course... can I get a drink?" He nodded and helped her, "Your wounds were fairly sever. The burns covered mostly your and legs, but you had only a few elsewhere. The worst of it was the claw wound in your side and the bones that had broken when you had been tossed against the cliff; apparently the dragon had put in a good effort to disembowel you. Still, we managed to fix the bones and seal the wound with magic. You'll be fine, but you should be more careful."

Irasir'in nodded silently as Malas started to stir at her side. The girl blinked at her mother as the elf smiled at the girl, "Hey." There was a pause before Malas gasped and stood out from her seat to give her mother a painful hug, "Mamae!" She started babbling in elvhen as Cassandra jumped to her feet, shocked awake by the sudden yelling and blinking around in confusion. Irasir'in laughed and winced at the same time, "Malas my love, could you not squeeze so tight?" Malas shook her head not letting go and Irasir'in sighed, "I guess that should have been an obvious answer..." Solas smiled at them as the Seeker relaxed. Irasir'in silently promised herself that she wouldn't fall so easily again as she stroked her daughters hair. She couldn't.

Two weeks later Cassandra entered the courtyard after finishing her morning prayers and sighed at the sound of metal crashing into wood. She didn't need to look to know who she would find at the training dummies this early in the morning. She walked quietly over to the training area and watched as Irasir'in brought her blade crashing down into the dummy with a vicious strike. Every morning the elf was up long before dawn and was at these dummies with sword and shield. Cassandra at first approved of her efforts but slowly started to realize there was something off. She didn't figure out what it was until she noticed how often and how many candles the servants were replacing in the Inquisitors room. She watched from the shadows and realized that the elf was sleeping less. How she hid the lack of sleep from her features, Cassandra could only assume it was magic of some sort.

She had asked Malas if she had noticed anything different about how her mother was acting. The two of them had become fairly comfortable being around one another over the few days they ended up sitting at the wounded Irasir'ins side, so the elven girl had answered readily enough. From what she said her mother had been trying to keep her out of her room, but hadn't been wholly successful. From what she had seen, her mother had been restless during the night. She said that the elf seemed to be fighting something in her sleep. Beyond that, she said she had never seen her mother train as she does now. The Seeker slipped over to the training area and silently watched the lithe elf attack the dummies viciously. Cassandra had seen a lot of warriors fighting in many different styles, but the way the elf fought was odd to her. Her blows were swift, twisting, and eloquent while being powerful. It was a style as much about the flow and form as it was about the effect. The closest style to it was the way the Dailish hunters fought, but there was more to it than that.

After two weeks of watching Cassandra finally felt confident that she knew what as well. As the elf paused panting between sets of blows she found herself asking, "You're using magic to add weight to your blows aren't you." Irasir'in stiffened at the sudden voice but quickly relaxed with a sigh. She stuck her blade in dirt point first and seemed to take this as a moment to rest as she answered a bit breathlessly, "What?" The Seeker walked forward and studied the wounds on the dummy, "I have been thinking about it while watching you train. Your blade is too light to leave such deep wounds, and your stance and blows concentrate on speed and grace. At the start of all this the wounds you left on training dummies reflected that. Now you seem to hit as hard as any warrior and I can almost smell the magic in air. So you must be using magic to strengthen your blows."

The elf sighed, "You know you didn't need to spy on me to learn that. You could have just asked." Cassandra blinked at her and hesitated a moment, "Ah." Irasir'in snorted at her before lifting the blade so it was level with her eyes, "It's an old technique of the Elvhen, instead of casting spells you fill your body, blade, and armor with magic. This doesn't prevent you from using your spells, but only the most powerful and skilled of the practitioners could do both effectively. It's called Dirth'ena Enasalin." Cassandra nodded slowly, remembering a similar school of mage she had heard of when the others had been discussing getting the Inquisitor formal training in something suitable for her station. Perhaps they wouldn't need to after all.

"Why have you kept your use of this magic quiet?" The elf lowered the blade, "Because I swore to keep it hidden away and secret from the world. I decided that my life is worth more than my word to the people that exiled me. Especially with my daughter counting on me to come home every night." Cassandra nodded slowly and the elf continued, "Besides, I have to be careful when using a sword like this one. I asked the blacksmith to keep it quiet, but I've had to have him make three new ones for me already." The Seeker blinked, "Why?" Irasir'in sighed, "Because filling a blade with magic puts a lot of strain on the metal. Even with the proper preparations and my own efforts to keep the magic in line, the swords eventually can't handle the stress. The imperfections in the metal become exaggerated and eventually it breaks or shatters. What I need is a silverite blade."

Cassandra gave her a thoughtful look, "Why not have one forged then?" The elf smiled at that, "I have had one made. But I've put it to the test and filled it with power, and it cracked after extended use. I need a very specific kind of silverite, fade touched. Something that resonates with the magic that is channeled into the blade. The reason you can feel that crackle of magic in the air is because these blades don't channel and contain it well. The bleed it off and just can't handle what's inside of them." There was a silence as Cassandra simply nodded. After a pause Irasir'in went back to the training dummy, "So was that all you wanted to talk to me about?"

The Seeker watched the blade hit the dummy a few times while considering how to answer that before finally asking, "Have... you been sleeping alright?" The blade missed its target and the elf had to catch herself when the anticipated contact never happened, "W-What? Fine why do you ask?" Cassandra studied her with a look that said she didn't understand , "Well... Malas is worried. She says that she thinks you are having some sort of trouble sleeping." Irasir'in frowned and the tip of her blade drooped to the ground again, "She said that huh..." The Seeker nodded and studied the elf. It was clear she had thought she had been hiding better than she was. "Are you alright Irasir'in?" The elf cast her a look at the use of her name before sagging a bit, "If we're going to discuss this then we might as well do it comfortably. I need a break anyway." She started off for the main hall and Cassandra followed her silently. Their destination became clear quickly as they mounted the stairs going up to the tower and her room, and the Seeker realized she hadn't actually been up to the Inquisitors quarters since they had been renovated.

The room was warmer than she expected for something so high in the air, the windows and doors to the room were closed and a fire roared in the fire place. The floor was covered in rugs that over lapped one another, bookshelves lined the walls and Cassandra wondered why the elf ever bothered going to the castles library when she had one of her own here. The desk next to the fire was cluttered with books, reports, and a few empty wine goblets. The elf ignored the desk and sank into one of the two seats that faced out the window of the room with a sigh, gesturing for Cassandra to take the other. The Seeker sat and found herself watching the sunrise over the mountains and cast its light across the lands that surrounded them. The elf watched it silently for a time before speaking, "I can still feel the dragons fire on my skin. Every night I see the fire again, watch as it burns around me. But that what always gets me is the smell and the noise. Every time the rush of flames ends all I hear are the screams of dying soldiers and smell burning flesh. I failed those men Cassandra. I got them killed."

Cassandra watched the elf sag under the weight of her own words and spoke softly, "You made the right decision Irasir'in. You couldn't let a dragon roam free, she would have killed who knows how many innocent citizens around her lair if you hadn't. Even if we had waited, prepared more, then there was still no way we would have walked away without losing some troops. We slew the dragon and ensured that no one else would die to her." The elf ran a hand through her hair, "I know. I just... it doesn't make it easier. They died because I ordered them into that fight. More than that, fewer might have died had I not let myself fall out of practice with my blade. Maybe if I was one of the masters of old then perhaps I would not have even needed them to risk their lives there. Maybe only I would have been needed... but no. It's arrogance to think like that. No lone warrior could end a high dragon easily..."

Cassandra stared out over the land that was filling with the dawn for a time before, "When the Enclave exploded, when the sky was torn open? I thought that I should never have left the Divines side. That if I had been there then she would still be alive. If I had some how known, or if there had been stronger warriors beside her... but such thoughts are pointless. If I had been there then I probably would have died as she did, as all the others did. You fought as hard as you could Irasir'in. Every time the dragons fire passed over you I thought that a blackened corpse would be all that was left behind. Yet every time you survived. By doing that you kept the dragons attention, made it attack you and stopped us from losing even more men. You did more than anyone could ever have expected you to. I would wish for no one else to be by my side on the battlefield."

The elf smiled tiredly at her, "You really think that?" The Seeker nodded solemnly. There was a comfortable silence as they watched the sun rise for awhile longer as the noises of a woken castle began to echo up from below, the bellows of drill sergeants and crash of steel from recruits being the most clear. Irasir'in finally stood, "Well the day calls. As does breakfast." The Seeker laughed as she stood as well, "Of course." The elf hesitated a moment, "Cassandra?" She turned to look at the other woman curiously. Irasir'in stepped in close and it was Cassandras turn to hesitate at look of sudden decision in the elfs eyes as she spoke, "Thank you for talking to me. I really needed it." The Seeker blinked and wondered at the closeness and focused that came with such simple words, but didn't back away, "You're welcome?" The elf smiled, paused, and then kissed her on the cheek suddenly, "Thank you." Before turning and heading out of the room at an almost too fast pace, leaving a suddenly blushing and befuddled Cassandra behind.

The elf hurried along to hide a blush of her own, she had almost tried to kiss the Seeker. Not a peck on the cheek, but a proper kiss. She had gotten in so close with that in mind, and the Seeker hadn't backed away so she had started forward but... she knew she couldn't just surprise Cassandra with things like that. Maybe she should have hugged her instead of redirecting to a kiss on the cheek? Maybe Cassandra wouldn't read too much into it... no. After the way she analyzed her fighting style earlier so easily, there was no way she wouldn't figure it out. Not with the hints she had already dropped. The elf shook her head, what was wrong with her? She was acting like some blushing maiden all over again. She hadn't acted like one since... her and Hartha'sal had first become lovers. She recalled how odd it had been back then, how flustered the girl had left her over little things. How she had always questioned her every action with the other girl right up until their lips actually touched. She remembered Hartha'sal vividly, her dark hair cut short, grey eyes, her fire and determination, how soft she could be despite how stern and serious she normally was... Just like Cassandra. Irasir'in missed a step and had to catch herself before she tumbled down the stairs at that thought, she hadn't realized it before. Cassandra was a lot like her first love. The elf paused there on the stairs, mulling this over for a few seconds before she heard Malas call up to her from the stairs below. Irasir'in smiled brightly and called back as she headed down to meet her daughter, feeling a good mood settle in over her. The thought of how similar the two were filled Irasir'in with hope. Maybe, just maybe, this would work. Only time would tell.

The next night wasn't any easier for the Inquisitor than the last few had been, despite her having finally spoken to another of her concerns. Her day had quickly been filled with paperwork and a few meetings with nobles trying to feel out the Inquisition and their elven leader. She almost felt like they wanted to find fault in her, like the meetings were more duels of tongue and mind than the social calls they claimed. It had all left her tired and wondering if this was all worth it. On top of that, she hadn't seen Cassandra since that morning, and for some reason that bothered her. She wondered if the Seeker was avoiding her but she dismissed the idea. Cassandra didn't strike her as the sort of avoid a problem. But then again, people could surprise you... these thoughts followed the elf to bed along with the nightmares of dragons fire. The two quickly drove her from that bed again and she found herself sitting on her balcony wrapped up in a simple robe. She had left a candle burning dimly in the room behind her, she had wanted light after waking from her nightmare but hadn't wanted its light to disturb her star watching.

The night air was cool against her skin as a breeze passed through the light robe she wore, but she was glad for it. The crisp air chased away the memories of the fire and left her with a fresh feeling. This had been her haunt for the last couple weeks, she would get a few hours of sleep and then the nightmares would drive her out into the cool mountain air. She was so lost in the stars and air that she missed the new presence on the balcony until it spoke, "Can you still not sleep?" The elf jumped and fell out of her chair. She blinked up at a concerned looking Cassandra, "Maker are you alright! I didn't mean to surprise you, I had thought you would have noticed me by now." Irasir'in stared at her, "Apparently not. How long have you been there?" The Seeker frowned, "I've been here for a few minutes. Perhaps I should have said something sooner?" The elf started to laugh, "By the Gods Cassandra. Yes you should have, you gave quite the fright." The elf shook her head as she sat up and noticed that Cassandra suddenly looked odd and had become more interested in the horizon. The Seeker coughed, "You um... might wish to collect your robe Inquisitor." The elf looked down and blushed as she pulled her robe back up to cover her flesh, "Ehem. Sorry. I um... dislike the bed clothes that Josephine insists on sending up here." She cleared her throat a bit embarrassed.

The Seeker shifted on her feet and Irasir'in finally figured out why she looked odd. She was blushing too. "I um... understand. I uh... I saw your light. From the candle. Inside. I decided that if you're having trouble sleeping then you might like some company. To talk to." The elf nodded and felt her blush spread as her traitorous mind told her exactly what kind of company she would like from Cassandra. "I-it's alright. You don't need to, I know it's rather late for you." She shook her head, "It's no trouble. I was already awake anyway." The elf slowly nodded and found her seat again, careful to keep her robe closed this time. There was a long and awkward pause before Cassandra finally spoke, "So... I wanted to ask you something." Irasir'in hesitated before taking a calmly breath and answering, "What's that?" The Seeker fidgeted, "Well... I wanted to know more about the place you grew up." The elf slowly looked at her, "Why?" Cassandra cleared her throat, "Well... I guess I want to know more about you and where you came from. You told me a bit already, the forest and the temple. I don't recall there being any Dailish that lived long term there so..."

Irasir'in closed her eyes and thought for a time. She had already broken her promise to the clan by telling Cassandra as much as she had so... "You can't tell anyone about what I've told you. You haven't heard of my clan because they make sure no one knows about them, and that's how they want it to be." The Seeker nodded slowly, "I understand. All of the Dailish like to keep their secrets." Irasir'in let out a slow breath, "We aren't Dailish. Honestly if you called anyone else in my clan that, they might challenge you to a duel of honor over it. We're proud of who we are, where we come from. We're... well we're of an older stock." She picked her words carefully, "We are a clan that never got enslaved by the humans in the first place." Cassandra blinked at her in surprise, "Really? I didn't know such a clan existed." Irasir'in shrugged, "I'm not sure if there are any others that do. My father had his theories on where to find them if they did exist, but the clan will never jeopardize their purity just to find the others. At least not so long as they still have the temple to watch over. You see we're a sort of... let's call us warrior monks. We guard a temple to Mythal. Our lives and the lives of our children are all supposed to be dedicated to it."

Cassandra considered this for a time before, "How have your people survived so long in isolation?" The elf shrugged, "Old magic and careful population control. Our biggest issue is ensuring that we do not grow too big. It's one of the reasons the clan has no issue with... well woman such as myself and Hartha'sal being together. We aren't increasing the population, and so long as we understand that if there's a population decline then we might be... called upon to do what's best for the clan, they leave us well enough alone. Same can be said of men with such interests. Food has never been a problem, with the Arbor Wilds being devoid of humanity there is plenty of game, fruits, and nuts for us to hunt and forage. It's really not a bad life." The Seeker digested this for a time and let a comfortable silence fall. After awhile she asked, "Would you tell me about... Harthasal?" Irasir'in studied her, "Hmm... sure. What do you want to know?" Cassandra thought a moment and shrugged, "Whatever you want to tell me." The elf laughed, "Sure. She was a strong woman, dark hair with grey eyes. She was a much better swordsman than me, but lacked my magical talent. Which isn't to say she had none, my clan has a lot of magic in its blood, but she had no natural talent with it. It was less a part of her and more a tool. She could be a bit stern, but also very sweet. I miss her terribly some times, but then I think we all miss our first love from time to time."

The Seeker nodded her agreement as the elf kept talking, "When I was young I had a lot of confidence issues though. What girl doesn't? But Hartha'sal, she never seemed to have that problem. She was always the stronger of the two of us. Once we got over our period of rivalry, she was always there for me when I needed her. She taught me how to be a better swordsman, pushed me to learn more magic. We were good together. But not everything can last and... well one day a group of humans found us. Tevinter. We ended up fighting them, and we did win. In fact we killed them to the man. But Hartha'sal... she died in the fighting. You'll excuse me if it's a story I don't want to rehash in detail." Cassandra gave her a soft look and put a hand on her shoulder, "I'm sorry to hear that. It must have been hard." Irasir'in sighed, "Yes, but that was when I was a much younger woman. Thinking of her... I miss her, but I don't dwell on her anymore. I have a life to live, and the past can't hold me down forever. It just... weighs on me from time to time. It helps when I have someone there with me to help me get past it." Cassandra nodded and Irasir'in watched a moment and looked at the hand still on her shoulder. When she made no move to remove the hand, the elf slowly and silently put her own gentle hand on top of it. The two woman sat there in the dark night and said nothing more. Just watched the horizon and the stars that glittered along it.


	17. Stepping Stones

A/N: Hello everyone! I'm sorry for being gone so long, but real life has been a pain for the last few weeks. I promise I'm not dead and neither is the story, and this short little update is to prove that. I have more I plan on writing and hope to have it typed up sooner than later. See you all next time.

Stepping Stones

There was a hiss as arrows flashed through the air, several slamming into Irasir'in's shield hard. She grunted as she pushed forward, her own archers launching a wave of arrows into the parapets of the fort. She charged forward with a rallying cry, cutting down another swordsman as her men followed her into the counter charge. Arrows flew and light flashed off blades as the two forces clashed. The crash of steel upon steel was deafening, blood soaking the sand as they struggled under the burning sun. She wasn't sure when it happened but the elf found herself in front of the wood of the door, blood dripping for her blade and arm as she panted. She checked behind her to see what the situation was but hadn't needed to bother, her troops were cleaning up the last of the defenders outside of the walls. Arrows still sang back and forth but they had won their way to the gates.

Ironbull lumbered over to her, a shallow cut running across his chest, "We've got them bottled up in there boss. What's the plan, we gonna starve them out?" She ran a hand across the heavy wood of the gate, "No. We're going in after them. I don't know what they're doing out here, but I want a proper base to operate out of while we're figuring it out." The Quanari nodded, "You're the boss." He moved her back and brought his ax crashing into the gate. She watched him slamming his weapon against the heavy wood silently, watching as chunks fell away from it. She watched the clean up of the enemy for awhile, the last of them falling quickly. The archers finally stopped firing at one another too. She gave him some time before finally stepping up, "Bull, hold up a second." He stopped and looked back at her, "What's up boss?" She sheathed her sword and fire filled her hand, "Take a step back." He nodded and did as she asked. She lifted her hand and fire engulfed the gate, sinking into the deep cuts Ironbull had made. It ate into the wood as she drew her sword again, "Bull. Take it down." He stepped forward and took his ax to the gate again, ignoring the heat of the fire in favor of cracking it. Sparks flew as her soldiers gathered behind them.

There was a crack and a chunk of the gate fell, Ironbull taking a step back from the gate as another piece went down. Irasir'in turned to the soldiers, waving her archers forward. They gathered as her and Ironbull got out of the way, waiting silently. The gates fell in with a cloud of sparks and the elf's voice boomed out, "Fire!" A wave of arrows flew into the gateway, and then a second and third. She held up a hand, "Archers hold! Swordsmen, with me!" She came around with her shield leading, bolting over the still burning gate with Ironbull at her side, leading the charge into the waiting ranks of the enemy soldiers. Several were dead with arrows embedded in them, others wounded, some with arrows in their shields. They slammed into their ranks, sending warriors tumbling to the ground as flashing blades collided with flesh. The Inquisition soldiers followed on their heels, roaring a battle cry. Bodies tumbled to the ground, blood soaking sand and stone as they fought. An hour of hard fighting passed before she finally found herself able to rest, not an enemy was in sight.

The elf straightened and looked around. She was standing at the top of the fort, looking down on the courtyard from above. She could see a few fires started around the grounds, more bodies littering them than what she had hoped to see. Even if the most of them were the enemy she knew that they hadn't gone down alone. She breathed in deep and held it a moment before letting it out slowly before grabbing the flag and its pole, throwing them down into the courtyard below. There was a ragged cheer from below and the men behind her as she turned and headed back down stairs. She was done with this fort, her officers would secure it just fine on their own. She glanced at Ironbull following at her side, "Good work today Bull." He chuckled, "No need to thank me boss. It was fun smashing the vints into the sand." She snorted, "That it was. Take a break for now, we'll be back on the road soon enough." He waved her off, "Don't worry about me boss." She smiled halfheartedly and just nodded. This was just one more battle to him and her men. One more stepping stone bought in blood for the Inquisitions war. And one more slaughter she had ordered them into. And she knew it wouldn't be the last. Now she understood why her own father was so very cold.


	18. Wardens and Nightmares

A/N: Good evening ladies and gentlemen! I know it's been... wow almost a year since I last posted. Dang. Well I've been busy! Getting use to a lot of changes, including a new job, and some how this got lost in my to do list. Well recently I got a very enthusiastic review from a new reader and I thought... holy crap people actually still read this. Soooo... I'm back baby! This chapter was written in a flurry tonight, and at time of writing is being wrapped up at about... 2:40 am, work is gonna be fun tomorrow morning. Worth it. Expect later edits to this chapter when I'm not half asleep. Thanks to our Guest friend for reminding me of this story. Log in with an account and I'll thank you properly ;) Now without further ado I once more give you, Where I am Home!

Capter Seventeen: Wardens and Nightmares

Blood dripped from her blade, but she didn't have time to clean it off. She kept her shield forward as she charged, feeling it quiver as crossbow bolts bounced off of it, one slicing her calf as well. She hadn't gotten herself a larger shield or if she had been slower to raise it she would be dead. She could hear soldiers that were less lucky screaming behind her. She let the noise slide off of her, instead focusing on a mad charge up the stairs to the parapets. She heard the warriors that came to meet her charge and roared out and oath as the collided. She let herself fade slightly from reality and the man that had met her head on stumbled through her now translucent body. She felt something pressing down on her from the Fade but ignored it as she snapped back into reality fully, blade whipping around to bite into the side of one man, tearing the blade out to take the head from the one beside him. She spun and met the hurried blow of the now recovered warrior that had passed through her, and used a blast of power to hurl him down the stairs. She felt a bolt punch into her side before she was turned enough to bring her shield to bear once more, grunting but accepting the blow. She cast lightning that coursed out and into the crossbow men now that she had a clean line of sight to do so. She stomped up the stairs, pulling the bolt free on her way. Perhaps there really was something to these Grey Wardens after all.

After they had found Stroud, Irasir'in had wasted no time in following his lead. If Corypheus really was manipulating the Wardens, she wanted it ended as quickly as possible. Hawke certainly seemed to trust him, and Varris trusted her so Irasir'in ignored a few protests to push things forward. After seeing the blood ritual at the tower, with memories of that damned future in her mind, Irasir'in gathered her forces and prepared for war. And now here she was, up to her neck in Wardens and hoping desperately they wouldn't need to kill them all. She walked across the walls, glad for the breather and the chance for her men to catch up. Cassandra strode up as soldiers secured the wall, "Inquisitor, we complete control of the gatehouse and the muster grounds there. We have men on the northern wall, but the Wardens are still calling demons down on it so it's not secure." The elf nodded and moved forward, "Send a runner to Ironbull. Tell him I want him and his Chargers to hold those, and ask Solas to support them. We're going to make a push straight for the central courtyard, the longer we wait the more time those mages have to drop demons on our heads."

As they came to the next stairs she took the lead again. She paused as she saw a group of Wardens fighting others. She was wondering who to side with when one in shining silverite armor charged forward, a battle cry filling the air as familiar magic crackled around his blade. She blinked at him a moment before deciding, charging in beside him. The man took her presence in stride, and as her men swelled the ranks of the rebellious Wardens they brought the fight to an end swiftly. She took the time to flick blood clear of her blade as the man stepped forward, pulling his helmet off to give her a grin, "You fight well lady elf. You must be Inquisitor Irasir'in. I've heard much about you." She nodded to him, "I am. And you are?" He swept into a bow, "I am Vallden Sorn, Warden-commander of the Ferelden Grey Wardens. Sort of. It's complicated and this is neither the time nor place. And it would seem we have to bring my brothers and sisters to heel before they get themselves all killed over this stupidity." The Inquisitor gave him a serious look, "Agreed. Then we need to discuss where exactly you learned to fight like that." The mage flashed her a smile, "From a bottle filled with wisdom. Now come. My men should have already secured a path to the courtyard. We have the dubious honor of being the force with the most direct combat experience, so these pups won't be able to stop us anyway. With the Inquisition knocking down the front door, maybe Clarel will finally listen to reason and we can end this neatly."

As she left the Hero of Ferelden to fight the pride demon, her and Cassandra chasing after Warden-commander Clarel and Corypheus's pet mage, Irasir'in wondered what could have possibly made Warder Sorn think this could have ended neatly. So much blood soaked the stones around them that she was starting to think it might rip a hole in the Veil without any help from mortal mages. They thundered up the steps and watched as Clarel made short work of the mage, hope blossoming for a moment before the dragon came crashing down. She heard a pair of footsteps charge up behind them as Hawke and Stroud caught up to them as well, the four trying to strike at the dragon. There was a crash of magic and a flare of light and power before the world was cast into darkness. As light came back she reflected that she really hated fighting dragons. Every time she saw one it always ended with her head feeling like it would be split in two and far too many bruises. She groaned and stood, ignoring Stroud and Hawke quipping in the background as she took stock. And groaned. "Mythal curse this entire damned quest." Cassandra blinked, "Are we... are we really in the Veil?" The elf sighed, "Yeah. Yeah we really are."

They crept through the dark and dank world, watching the odd and shifting place with open paranoia. Irasir'in grumbled, "I've been in here plenty of times in the past, but never all of me before. It... it feels wrong." Cassandra grunted her agreement and Hawke snorted, "Really? Cause I was thinking of moving here. Build a house on that floaty bit over there and see if it looks the same every morning." Stroud chuckled darkly, "I can see you and Merrill staying here. Using all that dream magic to finally have the baby. But which would be the daddy for it?" Hawke waved him off, "Me of course. Merrill is far too cute to be a man." The Warden nodded seriously, "And you aren't even mildly a lady." The woman laughed and Irasir'in couldn't help but smile, "I've seen her drink before, and I would say it's more likely she becomes a dwarf instead." Another round of laughs to stave off the darkness before things crawled out of the dark to attack them. At first it was just demons, but that changed quickly and not for the better. Irasir'in found herself fighting figures clad in grey hoods and silverite armor, the demons of her past having come to life here. She was almost grateful when the spirit arrived.

She remembered the glowing figure that posed as the Divine from those snippets of memory that remained after the explosion. It had saved her once before. They talked for a short time and as it left Cassandra glared at her, "You can't truly trust that thing." The elf shrugged, "If I remember my training right, that was a spirit of faith of some sort." Cassandra shook her head, "That could have been a demon for all we know." Ira gave her an annoyed look, "I know what I'm talking about here. That wasn't a demon. Now come on. If my memories are here, then we should gather them quickly and be done with this damned place, before we become unable to ever leave."

They stood before the Nightmare itself and the rift it guarded. Irasir'in's face was ash grey and grim, she should have known. If this aspect was going to pick something from her fears to impersonate, of course it would be HIM. It always seemed to come back to him. Her father drew his blade and smiled that all too familiar smile. She silently cursed the demon. This would be harder than she thought, but at least here in the Veil her magic was more powerful than ever. She strode forward and hurled death at the demon, not letting the fact that it didn't even flinch stop her. She would burn this monster from the world. They slammed into it, her blade glowing with power as she channeled heavy magic into it. Each blow was more powerful than the last, and she danced around the demon. Cassandra shouted and slammed her shield into it, blade crashing down as well to leave bloody gashes in its flesh. Stroud was blown back and Hawke launched arrows at Nightmare with unwavering precision. When it summoned minions her and Stroud put them to the sword as Cassandra and Irasir'in fought the Aspect. She found herself falling into a rhythm with the Seeker, one coming forward to strike as the other blocked blows, the two following into a dance of death as they blocked, spun, and ducked not only the blows of the demon but around each other to confuse him. They never stopped moving, and Irasir'in marveled at her for keeping time. All those days of the human watching her practice in the yard but have finally paid off. She took a blow meant for the Seeker and Cassandra drove her blade up into the demons guts, going into the chest from below. It was finally too much for the Aspect and it shuttered and turned to ash.

As the neared the portal Hawke cursed, "We'll never make it. The demons body is coming down in force. We need a distraction." Stroud nodded grimly, "You're right. I'll fight. You three go." Hawke sputtered, "What!? No! The Wardens need you. And it's my fault all this is happening, if I hadn't failed to kill the damn darkspawned shit to begin with-" Stroud held up a hand, "The Wardens have Warden-commander Sorn. And you have Merrill. Do you want me to explain to her why the love of her life didn't come back?" Hawke's mouth shut tight. "I thought not. You all have something to live for. I only have this last stand. Just... make sure to beat this bastard." Irasir'in nodded and clasped his hand, "You fought well. I just wish we had had more time to get to know each other." Stroud nodded and Hawke clasped his hand tightly too, "Make it hurt Stroud." He grinned, "Always do." The last they saw of him was a flashing blade and streaks of blood as he fought the Nightmare. And Irasir'in silently added one more name to the list of people she had failed in this fight.

They walked among the ruins that had the day before been a might fort. Walls were torn open and burned like an open wound bled. Bodies littered the ground, Warden and Inquisition intermingling with demons and abominations. The could hear the last few fights ending after the long night of open warfare. And Irasir'in just wanted to sleep. The further they went the more that became true and when she stumbled she felt Cassandra catch her, then curse. "How long have you had this wound?" The elf glanced down to see what she meant and saw the puncture from the bolt, "Oh. Right. Mmm stairs to the inner wall." The Seeker cursed and called for a healer as she made her sit down. Irasir'in grunted as she landed a bit heavily, "Wasn't time to worry about it earlier." Cassandra scowled as she pulled the chainmail that made up that section of the armor away, "Went pretty deep. How were you walking with this?" The elf shrugged, "I'm use to pain. And a bit of magic to slow the bleeding. Was easier in the Fade, but now I'm so tired..." She felt warmth spreading down her side more than before as the magic eased, the Seeker cursing as she stuffed something into the wound. Cloth? She wondered where she had gotten that. "Don't worry. I've survived worse." The Seeker scowled, "I don't care. If you bleed out now I'll never forgive you." Irasir'in smiled weakly, "Funny. That almost sounds like an unprofessional amount of concern from you Cassandra." The healer arrived and hurriedly got to work as Cassandra fretted, "Shut up and save your strength." The elf gave her a wry smile, " 'n the off chance I do bleed out... make sure literally anyone else takes care of Malas, I don't want you turning her into a sister of the Chantry." Cassandra glowered at her as the healer started wrapping her side in bandages, "You're bleeding out and you make a joke?" The elf snorted, "Yeah. Maybe I've ended up half dead one too many times. Wonder, if I pass out again do I win a prize?" The Seeker just glared as the elf laughed.

A few minutes and much fussing from Cassandra later, Irasir'in met with Warden-commander Sorn. The man gave her a tired smile, "Good to see you alive Inquisitor. Everyone thought you were dead after that blast." The elf matched his smile with an equally tired one of her own, "Yes well, rumors of my demise and all that. I am glad to see you alive as well. It'll make it easier to keep the Wardens from doing something stupid with you around." Sorn chuckled, "Oh I wouldn't count on that. They're experts in dumb decisions. Trust me, I know that intimately." Ira shrugged, "I can't say too much about that myself. I have been walking around with an open bolt wound after all." The mage nodded, "Fair. So. I assume you're not here to make small talk." Ira nodded somberly, "Astute. I came here to make you and your men an offer. Either you can go into exile, or join the Inquisition." Sorn's eyebrows shot up, "Join the... now why would you offer that?" She sighed and looked over the bodies, "We both ended up badly bloodied here. I need to make up for the losses some how and... well frankly you helped us win. If you can control the Wardens then... well they need a chance to atone for their failings." Sorn studied her and then nodded somberly, "Aye... alright. Alright then. We'll join you. We were played like puppets by Corypheus, twice now, and I won't just sit idly by in exile when we could be helping. You'll have the Grey Wardens. Or at least what's left in these lands. I'll need time to get them into a semblance of order again, but we'll march out by the end of the week. I swear it." Irasir'in nodded, "Good. Now I need to get back to my own men and get them together as well." She clasped the Wardens hand before heading out.

Two weeks later they finally made it back to Skyhold and Irasir'in finally got to relax. Until the nightmares came. Dreams of her family all laying dead on the ground and her blade covered in their blood. A thousand souls crying out for justice, demanding for her to be brought to account. She shot up gasping and sweating. She pulled herself out of the bed and stumbled to the balcony. She stood in fringed air and forced herself to take slow, deep breaths. It was just a dream. She knew that it was. Or... well after what she had seen in the Fade, it was likely that it was being made just to torment her, but still just a dream. She shut her eyes and listened to the wind. She heard boots coming up the stairs, the familiar tread of Cassandra. She hadn't lit a candle, so she assumed the Seeker was just coming to check on her. There was a pause before the woman mad her way over to stand behind Irasir'in. There was a long pause before she spoke softly, "Are you alright?" Ira sighed heavily, "No. But I'll live." There was a pause and then shifting in the room behind her. She felt a robe placed around her shoulders, "You really should start wearing bedclothes if you're going to jump out of bed and head outside like this." The elf shrugged, "No one can actually see anything up here. Well... except you." There was a pause, "I... I suppose. But..." Irasir'in suddenly turned to face her, "Does it bother you?" She hadn't closed the robe and thought she could see Cassandra's face glowing as she blushed, "I-it's improper for the Inquisitor to-" The elf suddenly stepped in close, her thoughts a bit sluggish since she hadn't had much time to sleep before the nightmare came, and spoke without bothering to let those thoughts catch up, "And if I want to be improper Cassandra? What if I'm sick of being so damn proper all the time?" The Seeker was definitely blushing, "I am your subordinate and-" Irasir'in leaned in close, wondering what she was even doing now, "So what? After all we've been through and yet you constantly get all stiff. You show concern when I get wounded, more than you should, spend nights helping me get past my nightmares, and yet moments like this you call me Inquisitor and talk about what's proper. What if I. Just. Don't. Care." The Seeker's mouth opened and close, and she realized she was trying to back away as Irasir'in advanced, the human colliding with the outer wall of the room next to the door, "I-I-Inquisitor, I don't know what's gotten into you-" Ira leaned in closer, their chests touching now as the elf wondered what those lips would taste like as a rational part of her mind screamed for her to stop, "Maybe that's exactly my problem Cassandra. Nothing has gotten into me in years. No one has. And I just wish... that for even one night I could have that again. Someone with me in my bed. Someone that I let into my life willingly. Someone... like you." Cassandra tried to speak, confusion and something else filling her face, but something in Irasir'in was tired of taking her life step by step. And without letting a word pass them, her lips found the Seekers in a fierce kiss.

They were locked in that kiss for only a moment before Irasir'in suddenly pulled back as reason finally came back to her, "Oh by Mythal's bouncing... I-I-I don't know what came over me. Cassandra I'm sorry I..." The Seeker didn't answer as she pushed past and hurried away, fleeing down the stairs of the tower. And Irasir'in stood on the balcony, alone and horrified with herself. She was an idiot. An idiot that may have just ruined everything. What had she done? She found herself sitting in a chair, breathless. She ruined it. Ruined it and scared off Cassandra. She put her head in her hands and silently mourned over her own idiocy. Hours later she was still sitting there when she heard carefully measured footsteps coming up. She didn't move from her chair, just staring into the night. She listened to the footsteps approach absently, and then straightened as she recognized them. Cassandra? She closed her robe more and turned, looking back at the top of the stairs as the Seeker arrived at the top of them, her features hidden in the shadows there. Fear spiked through Irasir'in, she was back. Why? The woman visibly took a deep breath before stepping from the stairs and back into the bedchamber.


	19. Passions

A/N: I wanted to thank those of you reading, ShadowAthems for showing me that at least a few of my old readers were back, and my new readers for existing. Thank you all for joining on the path of Irasir'in and her adventures again. I know I was gone for too long, I had never meant to be gone so long and there's no good reason for it. I loved writing this, and I loved knowing you guys liked it enough to come back regularly to read too. Thank you all. Please enjoy, and I look forward to writing for you all again.

Chapter Eighteen: Passions

She stood as the other woman approached. She had come back. Irasir'in didn't know why, but it didn't matter. She had to say it while she could, "I am sorry. I should not have pushed myself upon you like that. It was improper and I never should have dishonored you in such a base fashion." She bowed and waited for an answer while her father seemed to lecture her as a child once more. Mythal does not care for your reasons and excuses. She cares for truth and no less. The silence dragged on before she slowly straightened. She met Cassandra's eye and after a time the Seeker finally said, "It's... alright. You've been under a lot of stress. Haven't really slept in awhile." The elf frowned, "You do not need to make excuses for me Cassandra. We both know I did wrong. No need to pretend there's a reasoning to make that right." There was an awkward pause before Cassandra spoke quietly, "You... you surprised me. Shocked me." Irasir'in stiffened but nodded her agreement. Here it came. There was a longer pause before Cassandra finally said, "You're a woman. And the Inquisitor." The elf nodded, knowing what would come next. The rejection. The turning away. She shouldn't have even dreamed Cass would want her. She wanted a perfect man to sweep her off her feet, not an imperfect woman. So it was a surprise when Cassandra approached her, until they were so close she could feel the other woman's body heat, "And... tonight... I don't care." Irasir'in's eyes widened in shock, and then their lips were locked once more in a feverish kiss. When they broke for breath the elf was dizzy with it, "B-but..." Cassandra kissed her again, softer this time, before answering, "I accept your apology so... just kiss me again." The elf smiled as they came together once more. She guided Cassandra to the bed and pushed the woman to it. She let the robe fall to the floor before falling on her hungrily. She would make the most of this, even if it was just for one night...

Cassandra slowly came awake and blinked at the unfamiliar ceiling above her. Where was she? Then memories of the night before flooded back in and she grew still. She felt the warm furs around her, a detail of the Inquisitors bed that Josephine loved the bemoan. She said it wasn't right for an Inquisitor to sleep in such common things. But Cassandra had to agree with Irasir'in now, it was immensely comfortable. And a lovely distraction for her mind. She steeled herself and checked the bed beside her, feeling a mix of worry and relief when the elf wasn't there. She sat up, keeping the fur pulled about her to hide her nakedness as she looked around the room. Her eyes found Irasir'in quickly, she was watching the sunrise. And she looked... beautiful. Radiant. She seemed to feel Cassandra's eyes on her and turned, smiling as she stood and crossed the room clad in nothing but the warm morning light. The Seeker felt like she should say something, stop her, do... something. Instead she found herself letting the furs drop away as the elf kissed her deeply as she guided her back down into the bed.

A couple hours later she found herself tracing the elf's scars and tattoos. She finally had gotten a better look at the bottom of the Vallaslin, the roots of that tree running down her thighs and legs. There were a few bits of it that led to places she couldn't imagine allowing someone near. Or maybe she should say anyone else. She mulled over that thought before speaking softly, "This was... madness." The elf laughed a bit breathlessly, "Well then it's a good thing I'm insane." Cassandra shook her head, why had she let Irasir'in lead her into this mess? She shouldn't be in bed with her right now. She shouldn't be in bed with a woman. She... The thought trailed off as Ira kissed her softly, "I can see you over thinking this. Stop it."

The Seeker sighed, "Someone has to put some thought into it. I mean we just... what we just did was-" The elf cut her off with another kiss, "Amazing. Stop trying to ruin it. What we did was perfectly fine. And everything I had hoped it to be." Cassandra blushed, "Hoped it would be?" The elf smiled softly, "I... must admit to having fantasied once or twice about this." Cassandra blushed deeper. It was had for her to grasp this. In fact it was hard for her to understand why she even had come back the night before. Why she had kissed her again, let herself be brought to this bed, why... she studied the elf's face. She looked happy. Brighter. Maybe that was why. She had had some thought to find out why Irasir'in had kissed her, to get an explanation of some sort as she recalled. But once there again in front of her, seeing the shame and pain on the Inquisitors face... she just wanted to see it gone. She jumped a bit when there was a knock on the chamber door, and horror filled her face as she tried to remember where her clothes went.

Irasir'in just sighed at her panic and called down, "Who is it?" A familiar woman's voice called back, "Josephine. We have business this morning Inquisitor, you can't sleep in today." The elf snorted as she heard Jose starting to open the door, "Well don't come up, I'm not decent. I only just got up to greet the morning." There was a pause and a muttered curse, "Get dressed and come to my office. You have trade agreements to sign, and a guest that's sent a rider ahead to inform us that he'll be here by lunch." Ira groaned, "Fine. Give my fifteen minutes." Jose grumbled, re-shut the door, and her foot steps trailed away down the stairs. Cassandra was halfway back into her pants and wondering where her shirt was when she noticed Irasir'in watching her with a neutral expression, "So eager to leave now?" Cassandra stopped lacing up her pants and sat on the edge of the bed, heart pounding, "I... don't know." The elf watched her a moment longer before going to her chest and retrieving her own clothes. Cassandra watched her pull on pants and reach for her shirt, and found herself asking, "Aren't you going to wear small clothes?" The elf stopped, her back to her, "Why? I noticed last night that you don't either." The Seeker shrugged, blushing, "I'm not the Inquisitor, and you-" She was cut off by Irasir'in striding across the space between them to shove her back onto the bed. The woman began to say something as the elf straddled her and leaned over her, looking her dead in the eye, "I. Don't. Care. Inquisitor is a title, my duty. Not who I am. And who I am is a woman that wants to know, do you regret last night already?" Cassandra paused for a long moment before, "I... our duty..." the elf shook her head, "I asked don't care about duty or propriety, I want to know if you as a person regret it. I want truth." Cassandra was silent for a long while before finally whispering, "No." And Irasir'in kissed her softly, "Good. Then stop trying to flee like a thief from the morning light. Because I would rather see you leaving here as the knight that saved the lady." The elf got off her. Cassandra slowly sat up and found the missing shirt being offered to her.

Cassandra was still mulling over the idea of being a knight hours later. She had tried to get it off her mind but it crept back whenever she let her guard down. She saved her? From what? She couldn't see Irasir'in as a lady needing saving. Expect maybe from her own mind. She was walking into Josephine's office and heard Irasir'in almost yelling as she entered, "I should just have him thrown in a damned cell!" She paused as she saw Irasir'in there, looking like she wanted to hit someone. Josephine looked like this wasn't the first time she's heard this today, "You can't just do that and you know it. I told you that he wouldn't give up." The elf made a frustrated noise and sat, "I could perfectly do it. The soldiers would do anything for me." Josephine just shook her head and looked at Cassandra, "Is there something I can do for you Seeker?" She studied the Inquisitor and her advisor a moment before answering slowly, "I was just coming by for your input on a message I received recently. Am I interrupting something important?" The elf stood, waving it off before Josephine could answer, "Nothing no. Just a personal annoyance with our coming guest. Nothing you need to worry about, I was just leaving anyway." She gave Cassandra a tired smile and slipped out the door. The Seeker looked to Jose, who just shook her head, "She's a big girl. She'll deal with it. You should be informed as well, Bann Torn of Ferelden is coming to visit. He's a minor noble, but it seems he has taken it upon himself to try and change that by developing a relationship with us. His constant letters, as you could see, bring our Inquisitor no end of annoyance." She frowned, "That doesn't sound like Irasir'in." Jose gave her a conspiratorial look, "Well, I haven't read the private messages myself, but I've heard the Baron has a young and handsome son he's trying to have marry their way up in the world. If I was to guess, he's probably been trying to get them together." Cassandra felt a pang in her chest before she nodded, "I see. And even a minor noble would be a boon to our cause." Josephine sighed, "Yes well, I doubt our dear Inquisitor will agree. I've suggested several strategic matches for her these last few months, and she's refused to even consider it. She says her body is hers, not the property of the Inquisition. Says she'll only give it to who she wishes. A sweet thought, if a bit naive." Cassandra nodded in agreement, but she felt herself smiling anyway.

The Bann and his group arrived with a lot of pomp and an expectation of fanfare. There were a few people there to greet him, Irasir'in and Josephine at the head along with the Inquisitors honor guard, but most people simply went about their business. If the baron was off put by it, he didn't show it. Cassandra watched as the elf smiled and made nice, but she knew she wasn't happy. She saw the Bann quickly introducing her to his son, a handsome young man with dark hair and bright eyes, strong arms. He looked like a strong man and wore armor that made him look like a warrior. They were led into the main hall and out of sight, leaving Cassandra watching after them. Cullen, who had come to watch as well, commented, "That boys armor was too clean. I wouldn't be surprised if he had it cleaned just before they came into the keep." Cassandra nodded, "It was new too. No dents or wear of any sort." The war adviser leaned forward, "Dressed to impress and nothing else. If they were hoping to impress the Inquisitor then they'll be disappointed. She won't be impressed by some smooth skinned boy." Cassandra smiled a bit, "No she wouldn't be. After all, she carries more scars on her arms alone than most do on their entire bodies." Cullen nodded, "Well I supposed I had better make sure our men know not to start any fights. If you excuse me." He bowed and left, Cassandra giving him just a nod in answer.

She spent the day find ways to avoid their guests, training troops and taking reports as they came, taking extra time in her prayers, but in the end it was Malas that had provided her with the best excuse when the girl came to her, "Lady Sandra? Mama said she was gonna be too busy with her guests to play with me today, and everyone else is bein busy. Will you play with me?" Cassandra hesitated before nodding, "It would be my pleasure Miss Malas." The girl giggled and grabbed the Seekers hand, pulling her off to whatever the girl had planned for them. That turned out to be a tea party. She silently reflected on this odd situation as the girl poured her a cup of what she had been surprised to find was real tea. She also pretended to pour for a pair of dolls as well, the girl chattering away. She wondered where the tea had come from, and as she sipped it she strongly suspected that the girl had gotten a servant to make it for her. The serving staff had grown particularly fond of the small girl and tended to dote on her more than her mother did. After awhile of the aimless chatter of a child having fun the girl grew quiet, studying the Seeker intently.

Cassandra was wondering why she was looking at her like that when the girl asked, "Do you like my mama?" She blinked at the sudden question, "Of course Malas." The girl set her tea aside and leaned forward, "I mean like like. Cause my mama really likes you." Cassandra blushed, "She.. she said that?" The child nodded solemnly, "Mama talks about you a lot. She tells me all about the things you do, how you've saved her life on her adventures, how pretty you are, and how if I ever get in trouble and can't find her, that I should find you instead." Cassandra was silent, not sure how to answer that. Malas picked up her tea, "So if you like her too then you should tell her. Cause mama needs someone else to like her. She's been really lonely, even if she doesn't say it." The Seeker laughed a bit, "You're very observant aren't you?" She beamed at the praise, "Mama taught me how to see things. Like see things for real, not like how the Shemlen see it." Cassandra propped her elbow on the table and set her chin in her hand, "You shouldn't call people that. It isn't very nice." Malas gave her a put upon look, "Mama and Mister Solas say that too, but it's what you are isn't it? You aren't like Mama." She frowned slightly, "What do you mean by that?" She scratched her head, "Well... me n Mama are Elvhen. And I think Mister Solas is too, but Mama isn't sure if that's true or not. My grandpa was too, Mama told me so. And... you, Mister Blackwall, Mister Varric, and Miss Sera are Shemlen. Mama says my Papa was Shemlen too, but I never met him." Cassandra studied her a moment, "What makes us Shemlen exactly?" The girl thought hard about that for awhile, "Mama says... she says that it's cause you're born quick. That everyone born outside our clan is born too quick for the world, that they live faster than us. I dunno what that means but it seemed to make her sad."

Cassandra was mulling this over when a servant came to collect them both for the evening meal, a feast in honor of their guests. She sighed and stood, "It seems we have to go mingle." Malas pulled a face, "Can't I just eat dinner here instead?" The Seeker smiled, "I wish, but we need to make a good impression for your mothers guests." The girl groaned but obediently followed along. She found herself sat with the girl not far from the head of the table, where the Inquisitor was playing host to her guests. Cassandra listened with half an ear as the girl told her all about her latest lessons with Solas, and found herself watching Irasir'in talk to her guests instead. She was talking to the Banns son in particular, the two of them seeming to talk animatedly about something, though Cassandra couldn't make out what it was from where she sat. She watched them and made the occasional comment on what Malas was saying to keep the girl happy. It was fairly late when she found herself helping Malas to bed. She stayed with the girl for awhile before heading back down stairs. She looked over the hall and saw no sign of Irasir'in or the barons son, a boy she still didn't know the name of. She considered going to her own bed, but found herself heading up the stairs to the Inquisitors room.

At the door she paused, the heavy door in front of her sealed up tight. She hesitated before knocking, a short pause brought a muffled, "Come in." Cassandra steeled herself and pushed inside, carefully shutting the door after her. She went up the last bit of stairs to look into the elf's chambers, a room that was warm and welcoming. And brought back memories of the night before, and the blush that came with those thoughts. Irasir'in was at her desk, alone, doing paperwork. She set her quill aside carefully, "Cassandra. Oh thank the gods, I thought for a moment you were Adam. That boy is as bad as his father." Cassandra felt herself smiling at the obvious annoyance in the elf's tone, "I see he is causing you trouble already." Ira groaned, "Don't remind me. They plan to stay at least a week too. I might end up killing both of them if I have to sit through those poorly veiled advances. You know that boy spent the entire night telling me about his successes in dueling? Like that was supposed to impress me. Have to wonder what kind of rumors are spreading about me that he thought that was the best idea..." Cassandra laughed as the elf stood, gesturing for them to sit on the couch by the fire, "Well you seemed to have found something to talk about at the feast. You seemed more than happy to humor him there."

They sat side by side and relaxed, "Yes, we got on the topic of literature. He's a fan of Varrics." Cassandra groaned, "Of course he is." Irasir'in shrugged, "It's to be expected. I had thought I had gotten away from him finally when I came up here to start on my paperwork, but next thing I know he's knocking on my door. Came bearing a bottle of sweet Dalish wine." Cass raised an eyebrow, "Sounds nice." Ira snorted, "Not really. I hate wine, sweet wines the most. I prefer my drinks to have real weight to them. It took me what felt like an age to get him to leave, and he still left the wine here." Cassandra was surprised when the elf suddenly leaned against her with a heavy sigh. She realized quickly that the elf was wearing her simple robe again, and experience told her there wouldn't be anything beneath it. And from this angle a glance confirmed it. She shifted a bit to get more comfortable, wondering if she should move the elf off her until Irasir'in started talking again, "I'm glad you came to see me. After spending the day with our 'honored guests'," She said that with an inflection that implied anything but honor, "I really needed the company. And yours in particular is a treat."

Cassandra blushed deeper and left it alone. They sat there in silence for a long time before Irasir'in spoke softly, "I... I was wondering something Cassandra. Would you join me for lunch tomorrow? Just the two of us?" She looked down at the woman, who was looking into the fire and had a slight blush of her own. Cassandra chewed her lip before nodding slowly, "I... would like that I think." Irasir'in let out a relieved sighed, "Good. Yes I would like that too." The silence went on longer this time, but Cassandra found herself relaxing into it, even as a small callused hand found hers almost tentatively, "I'm not even going to consider the Banns offer. His son isn't really so bad but... I don't want him. I want you." She looked up into Cassandra's eyes, "If you are willing to have me. If you are willing to try." Cassandra let the words sink in for a long while before she answered softly, "I want to try as well. I... am not sure how this will go. How to go about it. I'm not sure of anything but... I'm sure I want to try." Irasir'in smiled softly and leaned up, kissing her gently. The first of many that would fill their night.

The next morning they were woken up by banging on her door, "I'm coming in Irasir'in!" The elf groaned as Cassandra cast about groggily for her clothes, foot steps stomping up the stairs, "We have much to do today if we're going to keep our guests happy, and I will hear nothing of delays from you!" Cassandra buried herself under the furs, her face beat red. Irasir'in glowered at Josephine, not bothering to cover herself, "Jose-" Josephine was already digging into her clothes chest, "No. I must ensure you are dressed in something appropriate today, with small clothes this time. You will be a proper lady." The elf tried again, "Josephi-" The woman held up a dress as she plunged forward, "Something very lady like I think. I am already making arrangements for you and the Banns family to take lunch during a ride through the lands around Skyhold. They'll make for an impressive sight for our guests-" Finally Irasir'in yelled, "Josephine I'm not alone in here!" The woman finally stopped her determined work and slowly took in the room. The robe and clothes left discarded by the couch. A half empty bottle of brandy on the table by the couch. The lump hiding under the furs in the Inquisitors bed. There was a long pause as she clearly processed this before, "Ah." The elf crossed her arms, "Now will you leave so we can get dressed, or are you going to standing that ogling my nakedness?" Josephine cleared her throat, "I... yes I suppose I will." She left the room as quickly as she had entered, though now her face was as red as the hidden Cassandra's. When the door shut Irasir'in sighed, "Well. That was not how I had planned to wake you this morning." The Seeker pulled herself out of the bed, "This... wasn't how I thought my morning was going to start either..."

A pause before Irasir'in pulled herself out of the bed, "Well nothing for it I suppose. It looks like we're going to have to tell Josephine." Cassandra gave her an exasperated look, "It's... It can't be that simple." Irasir'in raised an eyebrow, "Why not? I mean we've been caught, there's no sense in hiding it from her. And she can keep a secret so at least it will be safe with her." Cassandra sat there a moment longer before shaking her head as she grabbed her pants, "This... this is ridiculous. Completely." The elf laughed, "Well someone would have found out eventually, since we're going to pursue this course. It's a bit inevitable." Cassandra nodded weakly, "I just... wasn't expecting it to be now. Or like this." Irasir'in leaned in close, "Well then. You'll just have to let me do the talking then." And kissed her before heading to the door to call Josephine back in.

A/N: Made some small terminology changes. Ssssssh don't tell anyone!


	20. A Day and A Night

A/N: There's a poem in the middle of this, it's She Walks in Beauty by George Gordon Byron. I had gone looking for something in universe to put there, but I decided this was appropriate.

Chapter Nineteen: A Day and A Night

As soon as she opened the door Josephine, who was waiting outside, asked, "Is this why you won't even discuss the idea of marrying Adam?" Irasir'in paused and sighed, "Yeah. It is." She nodded, "Right. So what is he a soldier? A servant? Or were those woman's clothes I saw?" The elf sighed, "Maybe you should come inside, where we can all discuss it." Her adviser nodded and headed inside. Irasir'in shut the door carefully and followed her in, watching Jose freeze with a look of surprise as she passed her to stand beside the uncomfortable looking Seeker. Josephine looked between the two of them before finally clearing her throat, "Well then. When did this start?" Irasir'in shrugged, "Not long. Look Josephine, me and Cassandra like our privacy with our personal lives. Everyone knows that. So... can you please keep it to yourself?" Josephine laughed incredulously, "You think no one will notice?" The elf sighed, "We know they will. Eventually. We just... want to delay that." Jose shook her head, "Maker... I was expecting to find you in bed with someone one of these days Irasir'in, but I wasn't expecting..." Cassandra blushed and spoke firmly, "Does it seem so amazing I might have interest in a relationship?"

Josephine blinked, "Well no..." Cassandra fixed her with a stare, "Then it should not be so surprising." Josephine shifted a bit, "Alright I guess. I just... am surprised that Irasir'in talked you into this." Cassandra narrowed her gaze, "And what if it was my idea?" The elf looked as caught off guard by the question as Josephine was, "Your...?" Cassandra shot her a look and the elf just lifted her hands defensively, "Alright. Anyway, we know everyone will know in time, but we would like that time to be later. Not for example this morning." She scratched her head, "So... I'm just asking you keep it to yourself, not to try and stop people from talking." Josephine nodded slowly, "Alright... well. I suppose I need to change some of the plans I had for the Banns visit..." Both Cassandra and Irasir'in gave her a sour look at that. She held up a placating hand, "Don't worry. To make up for making secret plans on you... I'll tell the Bann and his family you had urgent business in your office and won't be able to make it to breakfast. So you two can... relax after such a rude awakening."

Cassandra crossed her arms as Josephine made her exit, then breathed out slowly after she was gone and sagged, "Well... this was not how I hoped this day would begin." Irasir'in laughed and sat, "Well... I'm thinking it might get better later." Cassandra considered her, "I suppose we'll have to have that meal together another day." The elf shook her head, "Oh no we're having it today." She frowned, "You cannot abandon your duty, if you have been promised to a ride and meal in the country with the Bann and his family-" Irasir'in held up a hand to delay the thought, "Not what I had in mind. I'm not a child, I know I can't avoid my duty. No I was thinking that I would love to have an escort for the day. Perhaps a trusted companion that can save me from the monotony of a day with our guests..."

Cassandra blinked, "You mean me?" The elf flashed her a smile, "Of course. And then tonight... well I know a large meal is planned, but it won't be a feast like last night. It might seem mildly rude, but I can pretend to have work again. And the two of us can have the time to ourselves." The Seeker mulled it over and nodded slowly, "That is... better I suppose." Irasir'in snorted, "Better she says... well we probably shouldn't delay going downstairs for much longer. If we both come down from up here late in the morning-" Cassandra cut off the sentence, "Then as Josephine said, we were attending urgent business. The kind that means we must have breakfast sent up I think." The elf paused, "Huh. Alright yes. I think our business cannot wait for us to go all the way down there to eat." The two woman smiled at each other.

As the horses trotted along Irasir'in quietly contemplated simply setting the whole party on fire. She had made sure Josephine hadn't promised her presence for dinner that night, but unless something drastic happened she was going to be stuck riding the country with her guests. The Bann was going on about the holdings and ties of his family in a particularly heavy handed attempt to impress the elf, and his son was once again in that damned armor. Armor she knew an enemy could see from miles off, and had never been tested in combat. Like the boy inside it she reflected. When her and Cassandra had finally come down she had found herself ambushed by the Bann and his wife, swept up in pleasantries. She had starting to wonder why when they redirected their walk to the court yard and their son exercising there. She strongly suspected they had been waiting for her to come down with Adam waiting in position to work up a sweat from the start. He had been sparring shirtless with their family weapons master in a display meant to impress. Irasir'in had simply wondered why the smooth skinned youth was trying to use such gawdy and useless moves to impress her. She wasn't some blushing village maid that didn't know better.

She came back to herself in time to catch the tail end of a question, "...better relationship with the Ferelden court?" She realized she had missed the pertinent parts of the question but... "We recently had the Ferelden Wardens join our ranks. I believe that King Alisters past with them will make future cooperation between our two groups smoother than it otherwise could have been." The Bann didn't exactly look pleased with that answer but covered it up quickly, "I see. I had thought that the Wardens didn't involve themselves in political matters though." Irasir'in nodded, "True but after a discussion with the Warden-commander, we decided that the arrangement would be mutually beneficial. They had had a... run in of sorts with an enemy of ours that we assisted them with, and as they say the enemy of my enemy is my friend." The Bann nodded almost grudgingly. As time passed and the Bann launched back into his poorly veiled attempt to make his family look appealing, Irasir'in found herself shifting her horse closer to Cassandra's. The Seeker had planned to ride with the guards, but the Inquisitor had insisted she ride by her side. After all, she had said, she wasn't a guard. She was the Inquisitors valued companion. Cassandra had looked a little uncomfortable with the phrasing, but had agreed. She knew Cassandra couldn't save her from the barons incessant politicking, but being closer to her made Irasir'in feel better.

Something she chastised herself for quietly. They had only just begun the relationship and already she felt far too attached to the Seeker. Perhaps it had been the time they had already spent together that made her wish to hurl them forward, but she was already worried that jumping into bed with the woman, not once but twice now, had been rushing things far too much. That Cassandra had seemed more than willing didn't alleviate her fears that it was straining the fledgling romance. She had just been alone for so long... she tried to focus on the Banns words. If nothing else he could distract her from her own thoughts. He was now talking about some land or another he owned in the south. She caught Adam watching her from the corner of her eye, and if her guess as to trail of his sight was right, then he was likely not thinking about the on-going conversation either. She didn't give away her noticing it though, no need to cause a scene over a boy being a boy. Besides, let the poor thing dream of what he would never have.

They were finishing up the noon meal when a scout brought a horse trotting up to them, getting off his horse and bowing low as he reported, "Lady Inquisitor. It seems an army is marching up the road to the keep." Irasir'in raised an eyebrow, "What banner do they march under?" The scout straightened, "They fly the banner of the Grey Wardens my lady." She smiled, "Finally. I was wondering how long it would take them to arrive." She stood, "I apologize Bann Torn, but it seems I have to greet the leader of my new allies. They are stopping here to rest and to leave some troops with us before they march on to Vigil's Keep to re-establish a full force there. Please, finish your meals and once you've had your fill of the country side, my men will escort you back to the keep. If you will please excuse me." She mounted her horse quickly and Cassandra followed her lead, the two of them hurrying off before the Bann found a reason to keep them there. Once they were safely away Irasir'in blew out a breath, "Finally. Remind me to thank the Warden-commander for his sense of timing later." Cassandra nodded almost absent mindedly as she glanced back to where they left the group.

The elf eyed her, "Something wrong Cassandra?" The Seeker quickly looked forward, "Nothing is wrong Inquisitor." Irasir'in laughed, "We're alone at the moment Cassandra, and I think that after the last couple nights it's safe to say we've grown close enough that you can just by name." The Seeker blushed, "Right. Sorry... it just goes against my training to use my superiors first name." The elf shook her head, "I am not superior to you in anyway Cassandra. Especially not alone." She nodded in silent agreement. They arrived at the keep ahead of the Wardens, but looking out from the gates they could see the army marching up the road. A few hundred men, every one battle tested by all accounts. They would be a valuable addition to the Inquisition. It took half an hour for the Wardens to march in, and by then a full honor guard awaited them and some food had been prepared for the march weary warriors. The Bann and his group had made it back ahead of the Wardens too, and stood to once side to watch the small army march into the fort with banners streaming in the air.

Leading the force was the Warden-commander himself, a tall man in well worn and well cared for silverite armor. He carried two blades, one on his hip to compliment his shield and a second larger two handed blade on his back. He carried himself with an easy confidence and a grin that made Irasir'in think she would like the man. He hoped off his horse and swept off his helmet before bowing low to her, "Inquisitor Irasir'in. It is a pleasure to see you once more, and under such more favorable conditions. Might I say, you are more lovely outside the armor than inside it?" Irasir'in felt Cassandra stiffen a bit at his words but the elf bowed her head respectfully to the Warden, "Thank you Warden-commander Sorn. It's nice to see the Wardens on the right side of the battlefield as well. I must admit that I was hoping to see more of your men here than this, but they make for an impressive force none the less." He grinned at her, "Oh these are simply the men from our gathering back there. My own forces are mostly holed up inside of Soldiers Peak." She raised an eyebrow, "Really? I thought a trading family owned that place." He chuckled, "Friends of mine that act as stewards for the keep. My men are the 'mercenaries' that they use to keep control of the place. Many of my forces went into hiding there once anyone disagreeing with the other wardens started getting labeled traitors. It wouldn't save them from the accusations, but the fortress is about as easy to assault as your own Skyhold is. One mountain pass leading in and out, and it's well stocked for a siege. Should you and your men need a base of operations in Ferelden, Soldiers Peak and my own Vigil's Keep are open to you."

They were talking about the Warden-commander's march to Skyhold for some time, much to the clear annoyance of the Bann, before Cassandra suddenly appeared at her elbow, "Inquisitor?" Irasir'in smiled at her, "Seeker. What can I do for you?" She gave her a serious look, "I apologize for the interruption Inquisitor but I have some important business to bring to your attention. In private." The elf schooled her face carefully to hide the surprise, "Oh? Will it take long?" Cassandra nodded firmly, "Yes ma'am. It may go on late into the night." Irasir'in nodded just as seriously, "Very well. I apologize Warden-commander, it seems my duties call. Please eat without me, the kitchen has prepared quite the meal for you all from what I understand." She rose and bowed slightly, "If you would all please excuse me." And her and Cassandra left. They were well out of sight of the hall and into the dusk light when the elf finally asked, "Alright... so what's so important? I haven't had time to get our meal for tonight together yet..." Cassandra took her arm and directed her without a word away from the main court yard to the stables. Irasir'in was becoming more and more curious about everything as she let Cassandra help her to a mount, ready to explode with questions after some time riding when Cassandra finally spoke.

"I was thinking about what you said. About me being the knight that saves the maiden." Irasir'in blinked, "You were? Oh. Well yes that's how I like to think of you." Cassandra nodded, "Well I came to a decision." The elf frowned slightly, "And... what exactly did you..." And finally she realized where they were, and spotted the hot spring she had found here some weeks ago. Irasir'in found her words trailing off. Someone had set up a picnic here, a basket she assumed held a meal sitting on a blanket, a large number of candles arranged around the hot spring and the blanket. Cassandra smiled, "I decided if I was to be the knight, then I must act the part." Irasir'in breathed out a laugh, "Creators... did you set this up all by yourself?" The Seeker just smiled as they came to a halt and she helped the elf off of her horse, "Do you like it?" Irasir'in grinned at her, "Like it? I love it!" And with a laugh she went to the side of the spring, turning gently as she looked around. Cassandra followed her with a softer smile as she watched her, "I'm glad you love it. Shall we eat?" The elf smiled happily.

In the basket was a simple meal, and to the elf's surprise and pleasure instead of wine it held a bottle of antivan brandy. They sat and ate, sipping the strong spirit while enjoying the night. Irasir'in looked into the stars and started naming the old Elvhen constellations, things humanity had long forgotten about. Cassandra listened intently, watching the woman's eyes glitter like a girls as they reflected those stars. She fell silent with a warm smile on her face before pushing herself luxuriously to her feet, "I think... that it is time for a swim." Cassandra laughed and stood, then caught a shirt that was thrown at her face, the elf giving her a mischievous smile as she kicked off her boots, "Don't just stand there. We don't want to get our clothes wet by just jumping in." The Seeker shook her head and followed suit, the elf was already in the water by the time she had set aside the last of her garments. Cassandra stood on the edge of the water and watched the elf as she smiled and made a coy beckoning motion to the Seeker. She smiled and slipped into the water.

They sat there, watching the stars once more as the candles burned down, and Cassandra took a slow breath before speaking, "I have one last surprise for you. Something I dug up in the library that reminded me of you." Irasir'in gave her a curious look and the Seeker dove in,

She walks in Beauty, like the night  
Of cloudless climes and starry skies;  
And all that's best of dark and bright  
Meet in her aspect and her eyes:  
Thus mellowed to that tender light  
Which Heaven to gaudy day denies.

One shade the more, one ray the less,  
Had half impaired the nameless grace  
Which waves in every raven tress,  
Or softly lightens o'er her face;  
Where thoughts serenely sweet express,  
How pure, how dear their dwelling-place.

And on that cheek, and o'er that brow,  
So soft, so calm, yet eloquent,  
The smiles that win, the tints that glow,  
But tell of days in goodness spent,  
A mind at peace with all below,  
A heart whose love is innocent.

Silence followed for a time, long enough to make Cassandra wonder if she had some how picked the wrong poem before the elf shifted beside her, swinging a leg over her to sit in her lap facing her. Cassandra blinked and went to say something, but was cut off by Irasir'in's kiss. It was soft, gentle, and long. And the only answer that Cassandra needed to her unspoken question.

They rode back to the Keep slowly, the elf smiling happily to herself as they went. The last thing she had expected was Cassandra to set something like this up. She was wondering who would have helped her with it though, she couldn't have had those candles set up and lit before they had left the castle, the ride was far too long for that. Which meant helpers... she was mulling over who when Cassandra spoke, "I... had a question I wanted to ask you Irasir'in." The elf cocked her head, "Of course. You can ask me anything you like." The Seeker chewed her lip before finally, "I spent some time with Malas yesterday, and we had an odd conversation." Irasir'in smiled, "To be fair, the more you spend time with her the more you'll find yourself having odd conversations." Cassandra nodded, "Of course, but this one... well I had asked her to stop calling everyone shemlen."

The elf frowned, "Oh. Yes I suppose that is fairly rude. Me and Solas have tried to break her of it, but she's still young and stubborn." Cassandra nodded, "I understand that but... I asked her why she called us all shemlen, and she said it was because we are." Irasir'in sighed, "Well you know kids they-" Cassandra shook her head, "I understand that she doesn't think of it as an insult. What was odd was that she said we all were shemlen. Me, Blackwall, the humans I expect. But she said that Varric was too, and so was Sera. And her father? Why does she call other elves shemlen?" Irasir'in grew quiet, her face now a neutral mask. She seemed to be considering the question for a long moment before answering carefully, "It's not exactly easy to explain, but I'll try. I said it before, my clan never having fallen but... they've stood apart from the rest of the world for a long time. So much time has passed that... well we aren't the elves you've met. We aren't the Dalish desperately trying to hold onto half remembered past. We most certainly aren't the city elves. As far as my clan is concerned, they are all no different from the humans around them. Because where everyone else has forgotten who they were... we stayed strong."

Cassandra nodded slowly, "I see." Irasir'in laughed softly, "I doubt you really do. Not by any fault of your own, but because it's not easy to fully grasp unless you've lived it. Your people... well humans have always seen each other as human. Tevinter, Ferelden, Orlisian, they're all human to you despite how different you all are. But to us, the people you know as Elven simply aren't the same race. They're... human? No that's not the right way to put it..." She sighed, "My clan keeps secrets. A lot of them. We even keep our very lives secret from the world. All to protect ourselves from becoming like the fallen children of the other clans. To remain Elvhen when all others have become shemlen. They see the shemlen as lesser beings to be pitied at best, shunned or even purged at worst." She ran a hand through her hair, "And... it's why I was exiled. The real reason. They think that by having laid with a shemlen, I have become one of them. That I will fall as all the others." She smiled a bit bitterly, "A fear I harbored secretly for years as I hid myself and Malas from the world."

Cassandra studied her, "And now? What do you think?" Irasir'in considered the question seriously for a time, "I don't know. I don't feel any different. The time among the Inquisition hasn't changed me. At least not in the ways I was taught being among humans would. But I also think it doesn't matter. Not yet. For now I have purpose, I have a path to follow... and I have a lover. That's enough for me." The Seeker flushed a little, "You make it sound so simple when you put it like that." Irasir'in grinned, "Isn't it that simple though? I mean really? You find purpose and it gives you life. You find your path and you follow it to its end, and the beginning of the next. And you find someone to lean on when the weight of the first two grows too heavy. What more do you want from life than that?" Cassandra smiled softly, "Not much more I think." They were approaching the gates, and a guard was already hurrying to get a door open for their anticipated return. And Irasir'in felt satisfied with that.


	21. Nightmares

Chapter Twenty: Nightmares

The early morning air was cold as she walked the castle walls. She hadn't wanted to wake Cassandra after having woken her with three separate nightmares during the night. It was the anniversary of her death, so memories of her first love filled her head. Memories of how she had gotten the girl killed. She paused to study the landscape, leaning against the parapet. So much time had passed since then... she was distracted and almost fell off the wall when a voice spoke from behind her, "An old ache. Pain of the past remembered. Blood, death, smoke. Pain, so much pain..." Irasir'in counted five slow breaths before turning, "Cole. You scared the crap out of me." The boy didn't seem to quite look at her, "Why don't you tell her about the nightmares?" The elf restrained a scowl. She usually avoided the spirit, but not because she had a dislike for him. In fact she liked his impulsive desire to help people. But he had a habit of poking inside heads, and she had too many secrets to keep. Cole shook his head, "I won't tell anyone. You want to protect your home. Your family. Your secret." She scowled and then relented with a sigh, "I'm going to trust you with that Cole. Because you are good at heart." He nodded, "But you should tell Cassandra though. You love her and you need to trust someone with your secrets. Before your dreams eat you." The elf nodded slowly, "I guess... you're right. I'll tell her. Tonight. Today, I have to talk to some diplomats from... um... mmm maybe I should find out who sent them..." She nodded to the spirit and went to find Josephine.

She stood in the hall, surrounded by fire and blood. She was panting, her blades were slick with the blood of the shemlen that had tried to invade the temple. She stalked the halls, Tevinter dead mingled with fallen Sentinels, and while the dead shemlen out numbered the fallen Elvhen, she felt as though each corpse was another blow to the chest. They had hidden for long, kept themselves safe, and she had ruined it. Brought death to their sanctuary. She entered the main hall and found the fighting still raged here, the Sentinels had cut off the retreat of the Tevinter so it was now done but for the bloody work. She caught sight of _Hartha'sal standing in the thick of it, her blades flashing in the light as she danced around the clumsy shemlen. Irasir'in dove into the fight as well, she would not sit by and watch as her clan fought. She ducked and swirled around blades, a few leaving cuts along her skin but no blows finding and solid to strike. She filled her blades with magic and cut men down, striking in a swirling dance of death. She found herself pushing closer to the warriors on the far side of the Tevinter, they were bleeding the humans dry._

She ducked under a blow and saw the mans head tumble to the ground from another blade, a second lithe figure joining in her dance. The two moved without a word, they were one person with four blades. They became death upon the battlefield. Irasir'in threw lighting into the ranks of Tevinter, Hartha'sal sent blows flashing to the side while the spells were channeled. It was beautiful. For a time they were beautiful. Then... she slipped. She never knew on what, something icy beneath her boat she thought, but she had made a mistake. One that had cost her. Hartha'sal had done what she always did, put herself in the way of what came. Irasir'in felt warm blood coat her face, the love of her life falling to the ground like a broken toy as the warrior pulled his blade back, seeking to strike again. Irasir'in didn't give him the chance, a scream filling the air as she shattered him with a blast of pure force, his chest caving in as he was hurled back into the enemy ranks. She through spell after spell, using her own blood to fuel the blows until there were no more enemies she could kill.

She could hear that there was still some fighting somewhere, but she didn't care. Hartha'sal was dying. She held the girl and sobbed, whispering soothing words and promising that the healers were on their way. She just had to hold on. Hold on. The girl whispered back that she loved her. She had always loved her. She would always love her. Irasir'in just sobbed the same in answer. Blood pooled around them and Hartha'sal. And Irasir'in, body fueled by pain and grief, left her there. Stalked the halls to find the last of the Tevinter. She ripped the blood from their bodies to kill their fellows, burned and bled the men till she had nothing left to kill anywhere. Still she raged, sobbing and lashing out. Her father came to her, blows hurting him as he took her in his arms. He had never done that before. And would never do it again. But all she could feel was the pain. The grief. Her death.

Irasir'in became aware of someone whispering something to her. Soothing words. "It's alright. It's alright. You're safe, you're fine." She blinked through the tears and finally the voice clicked as she hoarsely answered, "C-Cassandra?" She felt strong, warm arms pull her in close, "I'm here Irasir'in. I'm here." The elf clung to her desperately and sobbed into her shoulder, finding herself babbling in Elvish, "

I-I killed her. I killed all of them. Mythal show mercy it's all my fault." The Seeker just hushed her and pulled her in close, not knowing what she was saying but knowing what she needed to hear, "It's alright. It was just a dream. A bad dream Irasir'in." The elf didn't agree, but she didn't have words to express that. They stayed that way for a long time before Irasir'in finally relaxed, settling against Cassandra in a dark gloom. The memory was still far too fresh. The Seeker eventually asked, "Do you... do you think talking about it would help?"

The elf remained silent for so long it seemed like she wasn't going to answer when she spoke, "When I was a girl... I met a man that promised the world. A Tevinter magister. I was young, optimistic, and I wanted to believe. My clan, I, had been so long separate from the world. I had thought we needed to change that. The magister, he said he wished to speak with my father. Bring us things we needed. We wanted. Help him see that maybe the world wasn't so bad." Cassandra let out a breath slowly, "He lied." The elf nodded tiredly, leaning all the more heavily on her lover, "He came with carts and a few guards. I led them into the temple, the heart of our sanctuary. I had thought it would be fine, our warriors could handle a few shemlen if it came to the worst, and just brought them in. The carts as it turned out were filled with warriors. How he had hidden that from me, I'm not sure. Magic I think. Illusions. Regardless he had planned ahead. He had planned to plunder the ancient temple, and enslave whatever elvhen survived the fighting."

Cassandra was quiet for awhile before speaking, "You did what you thought was best." Irasir'in smiled bitterly, "That I did. And my clan saw a hundred of our number fall that day, more passing on not long after. So many dead that we couldn't afford..." She paused and said more softly, "One of the fallen... was Hartha'sal. My first love. The woman I had pledged my life to." She shook her head, "I should never have trusted the shemlen. Never have listened to him. It was all my damned fault. Many demanded sever punishment for me, myself included. But... I had lost Hartha'sal and in my grief I had killed Mythal only knows how many of the invaders. My father said I had been punished already, and that my actions had already begun my redemption. Though for years after I worked hard to redeem myself to me. I think my father knew I would be that way."

Cassandra was quiet for awhile before speaking softly, "I understand the pain of losing someone you love like that... I... there was a man at the Conclave that I was... intimate with. It was the first time in a long time that we had seen each other..." Irasir'in's hand found hers in the dark, "I'm sorry for your loss." Cassandra buried her face into the elfs hair, "Thank you." They sat there together in the dark for a long while, "Will you tell me about your time in the temple? It sounds as though you spent a long time there, but you speak of it so rarely..." The elf sighed, "Because it's a secret as is so many things... but... I'm already trusting you with so much..." She shifted a bit to get more comfortable, "To be honest it wasn't that interesting. I was trained to lead, to be a successor to my father."

Cassandra smiled a bit, "And that is boring?" Irasir'in snorted, "Immensely. I was trained first to fight with every weapon we had. Blades, bows, shields, even maces and mauls. Though I did poorly with those. I excelled the most with my magic and longsword, so that was my focus. After that... well you've seen me working before. I'm good a logistics, or at least good enough to not get anyone killed. I understand how to read people, even if the people out here confuse me some times. But most of all I was trained to be a true servant of Mythal." The Seeker made an understanding noise into her hair, "I don't know much of your religion, but I understand religious devotion." The elf laughed softly, "Honestly? I've done a little research on the Seekers. To get an understanding about your order. Your training isn't too unlike my own from what I've read. Mythal demands truth and justice from us, and cares for little else. It's funny how much our goddess demands these things while we enforce deception and merciless violence. I understand the necessity, but still... it feels as though we some how fail her in doing so."

She sighed again, "I received my

Vallaslin when I was... mmm a bit younger than Malas now that I think of it. I was dedicated to Mythal and destined to serve her until my death." Cassandra frowned, "I thought that elves received the tattoos when they came of age. A rite of passage into adulthood." Irasir'in snorted, "Really? Mythal how they've forgotten... the vallaslin aren't a rite of passage. They're a mark of ownership. They are there to tell the world to whom we belong. I belong to Mythal." Cassandra considered that a long time before, "And... the one on your back?" Irasir'in chewed on her lip a moment, "Once I was exiled... it was decided that I did not fully belong to Mythal due to my actions. There was much discussion on if they should peal the vallaslin from my body, but I managed to suggest something they could all agree to. Marking me with the sign of the betrayer. Fen'Harel. They thought it a fine punishment, since it not only required a new vallaslin, which is less than pleasant, but also would mark me clearly and forever as a traitor. There's a certain amount of irony involved with using his mark as well, but one they did not concern themselves with."

Cassandra frowned, "Irony?" The elf shrugged, "It's complicated. Long history lesson made short, Fen'Harel had frowned upon vallaslin and use to lift them from people in rebellion." The Seeker nodded slowly, "I see." Clearly not fully understanding. Irasir'in just sighed, "It's not important anymore I think. The Dalish will do as they do and the world will forgot the old ways. Perhaps that's for the best, knowing that they mark themselves as servants and slaves probably would shatter the Dalish sense of self." Cassandra just nodded gently, the elf feeling the motion in her hair. She yawned, "I guess we should try and sleep again. I'm sure Josephine has another bunch of asinine entertainments for our guests tomorrow." Cassandra smiled and lowered them both to the bed, holding the elf as she fell asleep. The Inquisitor took longer to fall into sleep, silently praying to Mythal for protection, and wondering if there was anyone left to hear it. And in time she finally slipped into a fitful sleep once more.

A/N: I'm sorry for taking so long to post a new chapter, but life has been a bit chaotic. It started with my father having a heart attack and triple bypass, and ended with a heavy work load at work. Everything is fine now but it's been extremely busy. So I hope you enjoy this short chapter and we'll see when I get the next one out. Till the next time.


	22. The Graves of Old

The Graves of Old

The inquisitor pushed through the foliage and scanned the forest beyond. Her companions were muddling through the bushes behind her, Cassandra breaking out of the ground cover with an annoyed curse, "You know, the scouts could be doing this more easily than us. It is not the job of the Inquisitor to find their own path in the forest." The elf smiled, "Maybe not but I do enjoy getting fresh air. And unlike the rest of you I'm use to this forest." The Seeker gave her a side ways glance, "You've been here before?" Irasir'in nodded, "I actually raised Malas here. It's one of the last wild places in the world and far from humanity. And I wasn't exactly a fan of humanity." The other woman snorted, "I take that's changed?" The elf shrugged, "Everything changes given enough time. Anyway, I know this forest well. And I'm actually looking for something here too. Before going to the Conclave I left a few things here and I wanted to collect them. Not too much, just a few things I didn't want to have stolen or lost. I hadn't planned to be away for this long but I'm hoping my bag will still be here anyway." Varric caught up to them with a groan, "I always hated it when Hawk brought us out into the wilds too. I'm built for cities and taverns, not for trees and dirt." Irasir'in just smiled at that.

They kept trudging down into the woods, ever deeper into the shaded undergrowth that filled the Emerald Graves. It was beautiful, trees towering high above them and birds sang, a world filled with life and sound. Irasir'in looked at home in it all, hoping across the massive roots of ancient trees like one of the hala that inhabit the forest around them, easily keeping ahead of the humans and dwarves following behind. Cassandra marveled at her a moment, the inquisitor had always been light on her feet but she seemed to have a whole new grace to her here. Suddenly they caught up to her, the elf raising a hand to call for a halt and for silence, her body language on alert. The scout group dropped into a defensive formation quickly and quietly, the seeker hurrying as quietly as she could to Irasir'in's side. The elf pointed silently into the clearing before them, Cassandra following the gesture to find herself looking at a band of men that had set up camp in a forest cave ahead. They were sitting among ruins, and were well armed with what looked like a soldiers gear. But they were clearly not soldiers, the men were dressed in a mix of different armors and lacked any formality to them, their camp included a large amount of supplies in crates and deeper in the sounds of more men drifted out. The elf spoke softly, "Bandits I would guess. I had heard that they had grown in number since I was here last, but I hadn't expected to run into them so quickly..." The seeker nodded and answered just as softly, "Shall we take them then? If this is one of their main camps then maybe it would be better to see them gone." There was a pause before the Inquisitor answered softly, "Agreed. I hate to see people taint this pure place anyway."

Irasir'in ducked the swing of a warhammer smoothly, driving her blade in behind the swing to sink into the throat of the large man. He gurgled and stumbled back, dropping his weapon to grab at his gushing neck, and the elf quickly ended him. She checked on the others and saw that the fight was well in hand now, and turned her attention to the last challenge before her. A mage with a few warriors at his side, but her attention focused on a female elf that was among them. She was just another of the bandits, but her armor was what drew the Inquisitors ire, it was a familiar grey mail and was paired with a matching blade and shield. The girl clearly didn't know what she had, but Irasir'in was fuming anyway. She had hidden her armor in this cave thinking it was unlikely anyone would find it, but these oafish brigands had stumbled on it and thought the same. And that one was soiling her armor, one of the few things she had been allowed to keep upon her banishment. A last gift from father to daughter. Bull charged past her with a roar, slamming into the warriors to keep them busy. The mage started to cast, but Irasir'in could already feel Cassandra's presence as she went to meet the mage. A mage hunter to kill a mage, appropriate really. The elf charged the nimble elven bandit, the woman sitting a curse at the Inquisitor as they crossed blades. She ignored the words, and whatever taunts she was tossing out, instead concentrating on something much more important to her. Making sure she wasn't going to damage her precious weapons. She ducked and dodged, never making contact with the steel instead of blocking it, something that quickly left a cut along her sword arm when she timed the dodge wrong. Still she took this as a moment to slam her shield into the elfs chest, knocking the breath from her as her blade sought the bandits neck. She deflected the attack but was too slow to stop the shield edge from cracking into her jaw, sending her stumbling back before the blade bit into her foot.

The bandit yelled in pain and attacked again, her blade cutting air as the Inquisitor dove forward, this time leaving a deep cut in the leg of her opponent, she silently winced with the new damage to her armor. But still it was fine, the damage wasn't too bad. Now she just had to let the bandit bleed out. She dodged another attack from the bandit, preparing to draw the fight out, when the elf suddenly stumbled forward and coughed up blood, a blade driven into her back. Irasir'in watched helplessly as Cassandra pulled her sword from the bandit, glancing over to see that they had gotten reinforcements and had made short work of the rest of the bandits. The seeker eyed her, "Are you alright Ira? That one seemed to be giving you trouble and you're bleeding..." The Inquisitor sighed heavily, "I'll live. And she wasn't giving me trouble." Cassandra frowned, "It looked like you had only landed a few blows, none fatal. That's not like you..." The elf gave her a mournful look, "That's because I was trying not to damage the armor she's wearing too much. It's what I came here to find." The Seeker looked down at the body in surprise, "Really?" She sighed heavily, "Yes. I mean she was making poor use of it but it is special. And really really hard to fix..." Cassandra shook her head, "We can have the armor repaired. We cannot repair you if you die trying to preserve it though."

The elf was morose now. She had her blade and shield again, which was helpful, but the armor was fade touched silverite. Which meant she was going to have to finally sort out their supply problem with the mineral, or at least make sure to find someone selling the rare metal. Either way it would costly and time consuming. And it meant she had broken the armor she had so carefully kept safe all these years. It had saved her life countless times, and had a spirit to it that few other armors could carry. Magic and the memories of the years long gone filled the metal and she felt that made it stronger than any modern steel. Or at least it was if she was using it. As the bandit had proven, if you weren't worthy of the armor you would never be able to make use of it. She sighed again and let the thought go. What's done was done and no amount of mourning or brooding would change that; she would just have to find a way to repair it if she wanted to use it again. Cassandra was walking beside her and studying the elf. They had killed all the bandits and had freed several slaves that had been taken in various raids and ambushes. The men and woman had been grateful and were directing them to find a group of freedom fighters of some sort they said lived here. The Seeker thought this was all a good thing, that the Inquisitor would be happy actually helping someone again, but it seemed the theft and then damage to the armor had soured her mood more than Cassandra would have expected. Had the armor been so important?

The human frowned a bit to herself, she had never seen Irasir'in as materialistic. Which meant it wasn't the value of the armor that made it important, but rather a deeper meaning to the armor. She studied the sheathed blade and the shield she had also taken from the body, both were finely made and beautiful. She could see elvhen script covered them both, clean and carefully wrought words in the metal. She couldn't read it all, but she felt strongly that the words there would tell her was so important about them. Finally Cassandra decided that she would see to the repair of the armor herself, she didn't feel guilty about ending the elf as she had or for damaging the armor but felt it was only right that she made sure the armor was made whole again. She also made a note to start learning some Elvhen, maybe from Solas so that she could surprise Irasir'in with it. But then she would also have to ask help from the mage... She was still musing over this when they came to the freedom fighters hidden camp, traveling under the suspicious eyes of the fighters there to speak with their leader there.

They sat among Dalish ruins that night, resting by a great statue of the Dread Wolf under the ceiling of leaves that spread out over them to hide most of the stars from sight. Cassandra found Irasir'in sitting on a chunk of stone a fair distance from the camp, her blade in her lap as she cleaned and sharpened it. The walked up next to her quietly and studied the bare blade, noting how the script on it was similar to what was on the sheath. She waited for a time for the elf to say something before finally speaking first, "The blade is beautiful." Irasir'in paused a moment before she kept working on the blade, "Thank you. My clan... we always believed that a blade could be as deadly as it was beautiful, and that one should not be sacrificed to ensure the other." Cassandra sat, "Tell me about it." The elf smiled softly, "It was forged for my hand. And I do mean that literally, every blade is made for a warrior when they earn their full armor. We have swords before that of course, but not ones as fine as this. When you earn the right to call... to be a full member of the clan then your blade is forged with a prayer to Mythal and your honor engraved into it. It's said that the engravings are imbued into the blades very core, making them sharper and stronger than any other blade to have ever been forged. I was never a blacksmith, so I don't know how much truth there is to it, but this blade is physical representation of my honor as a warrior of the clan. It should have been destroyed when I was banished but... well breaking one more rule did no more damage to my reputation than what my actions had already caused, and I have never felt I have done anything to be unworthy of my honor."

Cassandra listened silently to her before asking softly, "Is the same true of the armor?" The elf stiffened briefly before sighing and nodding, "Yes. And it's saved my life so many times in the past... all my weapons and armor are the marks of my past, living reminders of my clan and everything I've ever fought for. And they're by far the finest weapons I've ever laid my hands on, so I have plenty of reasons to make sure they're kept in perfect condition. Or at least as perfect as weapons can be." She chuckled and Cassandra smiled, "I see. Then I guess I'm sorry for damaging it." The Inquisitor shook her head, "No you were right. I should have just killed her from the start instead of trying to preserve the armor. What good is mail if you don't live to wear it right?" Cassandra nodded, "Still. I didn't realize it was so important to you." The elf smiled, "And you couldn't. Don't worry about it, I'll get it fixed and everything will be fine." A familiar silence descended, and the two of them sat together and the elf put her sword aside, instead watching the stars above them. Cassandra spoke softly, "It's beautiful here. I can see why you lived here for so long." The elfs hand found hers, "It is, but not as beautiful as you." The seeker blushed and smiled as their fingers intertwined.


	23. Hidden Truths

Hidden Truths

Irasir'in's breath steamed into the cold night air, another freeze was coming. It felt like they were coming on faster and faster this year. She heard Cassandra move in her sleep, curling herself deeper into the bed furs to ward off the chill coming from the now open balcony door. The elf shut the door softly and leaned on the railing, watching the land stretch out around her. She felt like a queen, looking over her realm from on high. She laughed softly at the thought. They sat her on a throne, armies marched on her words, and she stood atop a tall tower that was tall as the world. And yet she couldn't see herself as being worthy of it. What was she? An elf. A spellblade. A banished knight. A mother. She sighed, a mother whose daughter was growing up more and more outside her sight these days. She was eleven this year, come the next full moon. She was making plans for her name day, but she knew how fragile that could be in front of the world's demands. She breathed in slowly and let it out steadily. Time for the next move.

Cassandra entered the office looking for Josephine, and found herself staring at the ambassador and Inquisitor... dancing? She let the door close in confusion as a frustrated Ira let go of Jose's hands, "I hate it." The other woman laughed, "You just need to practice. You have the grace for it, you just need to let your partner lead and stop trying to take control. You're a lady, the gentlemen is supposed to be the ones leading." The elf rolled her eyes and grumbled something that sounded unflattering in elvhen. Cassandra finally spoke, "Prehaps you should teach her to lead before you try to get her to follow? I've sparred with her before, and she takes the lead from her opponents in combat and makes them follow her tune or fall. Besides, she might be a lady but she's also the Inquisitor." Josephine, "I know, but I thought that maybe learning to follow first would be beneficial, let her know what it's like to be on one side before immersing her into the other... perhaps what we need is a partner she's more willing to follow." Irasir'in suddenly smiled, "You know that might work. Someone strong, a knight come to sweep me off my feet." Cassandra watched them both a moment, Jose had asked her to come see her today. She had come first thing after her morning exercises, but had run a bit late because several servants had slowed her down... her eyes suddenly narrowed, "You two planned this." Irasir'in laughed as Josephine took on a mock look of astonishment, "What? Me? Planned this? Of course not Seeker, I would never." The elf put a hand on the ambassadors shoulder, "I told you she was going to figure out."

She shook her head, "You two are ridiculous. Why the deception? And what is the dancing for?" The Inquisitor smiled, "It was my idea. I thought it would appeal to your sense of romance. But I really do need help with learning to dance in a court, I'm preparing for the ball at the Winter Palace now so I'll be ready once we get the invitation, and I know how to dance in the fashion of my own people but... well I've been told it won't fit for the world of the Grand Game. I was hoping you would help me learn." The Seeker sighed and glanced at the smiling ambassador, "Such confidence that we can acquire an invitation... though after the Grey Wardens... Alright. I'll be happy to help the Inquisitor learn to dance, but next time you want me to help with something like this, ask me?" The elf nodded and held out her hand, "Sure. So shall we dance Seeker?" She started to reach for the Inquisitors hand when the door to the office opened, a guard looking around, "Seeker? Ah sorry to interrupt Seeker, madam Inquisitor, but Commander Cullen needs to speak with you Seeker." Irasir'in sighed, "Never mind. We can do this later. Go ahead, me and Josephine will be able to get this down." Cassandra nodded and left with the soldier, leaving a now blank faced elf staring at the door after her. Irasir'in sighed and turned back to Jose, "Shall we continue then?" The ambassador gave her a sympathetic look, "Sorry. I know you wanted her to help you learn how to do this." The elf shrugged, "We all know what it's like to have work get in the way of a bit of fun. It's fine." Josephine didn't look any more convinced by her words than she felt, but let it go and got back to the lessons.

Two days later.

Irasir'in studied the map in front of her, "Why do I feel like I'm preparing for war instead of a party?" Lilliana laughed, "Because the halls of the Winter Palace are the battlefield of the Grand Game. The battles fought there are just more often of words, minds, and seduction than of blades. Though some times those end up drawn as well." Irasir'in sighed. Her, Josephine, and Lilliana were standing around the map table and looking over the Palace and the lands around it, Cullen and Cassandra having been called away for more immediate issues once more. Apparently the roads leading up to the fortress had acquired an infestation of bandits, though she had been assured it wasn't so serious that they needed her to personally attend to it. She was wondering if something else was going on, it shouldn't take them both to handle simple bandits, but trusted them both enough to leave it. At least while she had other things she needed to do. She shifted her weight, "Speaking of blades, should we bring a few of our own? Just to be on the safe side? Or would that be... um... I don't actually know the word for it..." Josephine smiled, "You won't be the only one with a weapon hidden away. If you wish we could dress you up in military flair and you can carry it openly if the blade is ornate enough." She nodded thoughtfully, "Perhaps... I'll bring a guard or two I think. Someone that can hold my blade for me, so I can wear a dress but not go unarmed." The two other woman grinned at her, Josephine saying, "Why Inquisitor, I wasn't aware you had been planning to wear a dress." The elf flashed them a smile, "Just because I was raised a knight doesn't mean I have to always look like one. I will admit I have no idea what would be fitting for me, so I was going to ask the two of you to help me dress for it." Josephine nodded happily as Lilliana brightened more, "If it is your request Inquisitor, I most certainly can find some free time in my schedule to assist you. After all, we need to ensure that you look your best. Nothing less would be fitting for the leader of the Inquisition." Irasir'in smiled at her, "Good to hear. Now about getting that invitation, I know the court has been talking about me nonstop after the successful siege of the Warden stronghold, so I'm thinking all we really need to seal it is get a few of the more prominent nobles to vouche for us directly. Lilliana, you were working on a few leads right? Show me what you've got for me." The Nightingale nodded, leaned forward, and started to speak.

Irasir'in stood in the snow and cold, the wind whipping around her and pulling at her cloak. She had slipped away from the Inquisition fortress earlier that day, this time while letting Cullen and Lilliana know she was going out alone. She would have let Cassandra know too but the Seeker was away on a 'personal errand.' She was surprised Cassandra hadn't mentioned it to her, but all she could do was trust the other woman would come back to her safe and sound. Another gust of wind threatened to take her off her feet and reminded her to keep up the pace. She wasn't completely sure where she was going, but the urge to move, to search for something, had taken her up in a whirlwind. She created the next hill and looked down on her unknown destination, breathing in slow and deep before descending. She walked among the houses and small empty streets, a thought niggling at the back of her mind. She came to the top of the hill and stood under the gaze of the Chantry before it finally clicked and she laughed softly to herself. A familiar voice spoke to her, "Is something amusing Inquisitor?" She turned and gave the other elf a smile, "Very yes. I had thought the wind wasn't so chilled as it should be for some time, and now it's clear to me why that was. So tell me Solas, why did you call me so far through the fade at such a late hour?" He gave her a surprised look, "You know already? Impressive, most mages have difficulty seeing the difference when in their dreams." She shook her head and breathed out slowly, "Most mages haven't walked it. Not like you and I have. So few remember the old ways. So many of the children with Elvhen blood have simply forgotten what we once were." There was a pause of silence before he spoke softly, "You know ancienr magics. You've walked dreams. And when we met you didn't know any common, only Elvhen. Who are you Inquisitor? Really?" She looked into the dream sky, "You pulled me into this dream like it was nothing. You know more about the relics and artifacts of our people better than even I do. And do not claim to be Dalish but know secrets they don't. So who are you Solas? Really?" There was a long and tense moment before they both began to laugh, Solas speaking first, "I see your point, demanding answers I'm not giving is silly. And it's not like I don't trust you. I'm just curious of who you are." She nodded in understanding, "You're a knowledge hunter, you want to learn everything you can. I get that." She walked over to look over the sunny Valley, "Dreams... on my way out here I actually made stops to talk to Cullen and Lilliana, a small unimportant detail, but something the dream decided was necessary. The walk here though, I don't remember a step of that. Only the moments before I crested the last hill. It reminds me of what my father use to tell me, he said that I needed to focus on the journey more in my life; because how you get somewhere is more important than the destination. He said build your own road and make sure it's built of stone your own hands shaped. It might take more from you but it will stand the test of time. I think I understand that more now that I've led the Inquisition. If all you do is let others forge the path, then what do you really have?" Solas stood beside her studying the land a moment, "Your father sounds like a wise man." She nodded silently.

After a time he asked, "You know what the Vallaslin really is don't you? Why do you wear them?" She considered his question a moment, "Because it's part of who I am. I belong to her and am not afraid of that, or ashamed. Besides, I am one of her Knights, even if I was cast out. I will bear the mark of Mythal proudly." He frowned but didn't argue with her. She noticed a storm looked to be gathering on the edge of the dream, roiling clouds that flashed with a silent thunder. Solas noticed it as well and frowned, "A nightmare?" She sighed, "They're the reason I started truly sleeping through my dreams. I find them easier to handle if I don't need to remember them." He gave her a sideways look, "You should have told me. You don't need to stand alone against them." She smiled tiredly, "My nightmares often get rather personal. I try to keep them to myself... though I've been telling Cassandra about a few." She chewed her lip as she studied the storm, "But... I think I know that one. It's one I acquired with Malas, years ago when she was younger the Emerald Graves flooded in a massive storm. She's forgotten it now, but I use to walk into her dreams to comfort her through the reoccurring nightmare that came of it. It occasionally comes to haunt me on cold nights, so having another mind here to keep it at bay will be nice."

They spent far longer talking in the Fade than either intended, sharing little and unimportant stories from their lives. Finally she excused herself and emerged into the morning light with an easy smile, today would be a good one she thought. She spent the day humming to herself, enjoying the feeling of a good nights rest that she hadn't had in a long time. She was thinking about her lunch when Cassandra slipped into her office, the serious expression on her face dampening Irasir'in's own mood. She knew that look. The Seeker was worried. Still she just put on a smile, "Cassandra! Just the woman I was hoping to see. Will you join me for a meal?" The other woman paused before taking in a slow breath, "Inquisitor, I have a request of you." The elf's smile faded, "I see. Very well Lady Seeker, please tell me what is on your mind." Cassandra fidgeted, "I... have been looking into the disappearance of the Seekers the last few days. And I am worried." Irasir'in frowned, "Wait is that what you've been doing with Cullen?" Cassandra nodded guiltily, "I apologize for the deception, I didn't want to burden you with my personal concerns when you have so many other things that weigh upon you. I know how hard you're working to acquire that invite to the Grand Ball..." Irasir'in's expression softened, "Don't worry about that Cassandra. I always what to know your concerns. And I always want to help, so tell me what's going on." The Seeker took a deep breath and started.

One week later.

The two woman paused to catch their breath, dead promisers littering the path behind them, "I can see why you've been having trouble keeping their cult put down. They're like rodents, every time you think you've killed the last you find out they been breeding all day in the damn barn." Cassandra grunted and looked ahead, "We're getting close." The Inquisitor straightened up, "Yeah. I can feel it too. The end coming near..." She straightened, "Let's get this done then. I'm already sick of the stench in this place." Lord Seeker Lucious met them at the top of the hill, a cocky smile on his face. Irasir'in ducked a blade stroke with a curse and slammed the Promiser back with her shield, taking the moment he was taking to recover to take in the field. Cassandra was engaged with two other warriors, but the Lord Seeker himself was already down. Apparently the man hadn't been much of a warrior in some time. She felt an arrow pass by her head, she cursed and decided to handle the archer next. She just had to get by the one in front of her. She turned her attention back to him in time to duck the next blow, dodging left and fainting right before energy crackled along her blade and she sent lightning crackling at the archer. The man jerkwd and danced on the spot, a crack resounding as the spasms broke his bow. She leapt back from the swordsman's next blow before striking out with her own blade, her magic sinking it into the man's shield and drawing blood from the arm behind it. The man cursed and stepped back, Irasir'in blocking the return blow with her shield as her own blade shot forward again to leave a fresh scar along the man's armor. She pressed forward, her blade flashing in the light as she sliced off chunks of armor, free to move now that the archer wasn't sending arrows at her every time her shield move out of place. Finally she struck a telling blow as the tip of her blade cause the Promiser's face across the eyes, bright red pouring from the helmet slit as the man screamed in pain. She ended it quickly by taking his head. She spun around thinking to help Cassandra, but found the Seeker collecting the book the Lord Seeker had thrown at her feet. She considered antagonizing her a moment before casting the thought aside. Now wasn't the time for levity. "I think that's the last of them. I'll send a team to secure the fortress though, I would rather extend our lines by that much over allowing someone else to take it." Cassandra nodded distractedly, "Let's be done with all this. I have to get scouts out looking for surviving Seekers. No way they managed to kill us all..." The elf just nodded as they headed the exit.

Irasir'in slipped up the stairs of the workshop and stopped at the top of them. She studied the woman sitting at the table across the room and took a deep breath before putting on a bright smile as she headed over, "Dry reading Cassandra?" The Seeker looked up at her and deadpaned, "On the contrary it's a delight. I'm riveted." The elf sat, "I'm glad it has kept you entertained." Cassandra smiled weakly before her face took on the serious expression she had had a few seconds before, "You know what the rite of tranquility is don't you?" The elf shrugged, "Only indirectly from the mages here. My clan didn't do such things." A silent 'we couldn't afford to' hung on the tip of her tongue but she didn't say it. Cassandra nodded, "The mage rebellion finally came to a head when it was found that tranquility could be reversed. The Lord Seeker at the time had suppressed it violently, but the damage was done already. Between that and Kirkwall, everything came crashing down... but after reading this book, which had been passed down from Lord Seeker to Lord Seeker for ages, we had known all along. More than that, the months I had spent emptying myself of emotions for my rite of passage to become a Seeker had made me tranquil and I had never known. The vigil at the end of it summoned a spirit of Faith that came and touched my mind, reversing it and giving me my powers." Irasir'in sat back and digested it for a few moments, "Power and control. Those are the only reasons I can think of to hide this, from everyone. The knowledge could be dangerous certainly, but the biggest danger they pose is to the current status quo of the Chantry and Templar." Cassandra shook her head, "If everyone knew it was reversible it would be chaos." The elf shook her head, "No. It would spark off change. Though by hiding it and trying to repress the truth and the people it pertains to, you would cause much chaos when the truth comes to light." Cassandra frowned disapprovingly at her but didn't disagree as she stood and looked out the window, "The Lord Seekers kept it secret from all of us. The Chantry, the order, me, the... Lucian may have been right. I no longer think the Order has been doing the Makers work. Hasn't been for a long time. I think we've been gathering power for its own sake, abandoning ideals for expedience. I was thinking of rebuilding them after this was over but now... I'm not sure they deserve it."

The elf was quiet before blowing out a long breath, "I would." Cassandra gave her a surprised look, "You... would?" Irasir'in nodded, "I would. But not as it was, as something new. Something better. I... my clan is a lot like the Templar and the Seeker order. I understand what it's like to one day look at what you always believed in and wonder, did we lose our way? Did we forget ourselves fighting so hard to keep what we have?" She shook her head, "We fight for ideals and faith for so long, we eventually have trouble seeing past what we have to see what we could be. How much more we could do. So if I were you I wouldn't give up. I would fight to change what I believe in from what it is to something better. Maybe it's a fight you'll lose, Mythal knows that happens more often than not, but if you never fight then you never get the chance to win." Cassandra slowly sat and was silent for a time before nodding, "I understand what your saying. Thank you. I needed to hear that." The elf shrugged, "It isn't anything you yourself wouldn't say in my place I think." The Seeker nodded and they sat together awhile before the woman asked softly, "I wasn't aware the Dalish had anything like Templar of Seekers among them." The elf shook her head, "I said before didn't I? I'm not Dalish. My clans likely the last either way. We don't police mages or anything of the sort, in fact most are mages, but we... mmm our order was made to defend and maintain the temples of our goddess. We're warrior priests more or less." Cassandra nodded slowly and Irasir'in continued, "Before I was... exiles, my position was the equivalent of your own with the Seekers for our order. I was supposed to do and go where the others could not, and to keep the faithful and our temple safe from dangers as they come. It's why I've always had a respect for you and your dedication to your order Cassandra, we might not be from the same faith but we hold similar ideals in what one has to do to protect what we believe in." The Seeker nodded slowly again, "I see... will you tell me more about your clan?" The Inquisitor paused, her face falling as she now studied the table instead of the other woman, "I... can't. I shouldn't have said as much as I have really... I shouldn't have even told you I was part of the clan, let alone that they exist." She slipped to her feet, "Another thing we have in common with the Seekers. We've spent so long keeping secrets that they define us more than our faith. And all those secrets... we keep them out of hate and fear. An arrogance that makes us think standing beyond the reach of man will allow us to stand beyond the reach of the world. I fear when that illusion comes crashing down... so will everything else." She smiled sadly, "If you don't change the Seekers then they'll end up like that too. So defined by what they keep secret that when the truth is seen it will consume them... sorry. I'm being dramatic aren't I?" Cassandra shook her head, "No. It's fine. But maybe you should stop letting those secrets and fears rule you too. You're not in the clan right?" The elf straightened up stiffly, "I... am a knight of Mythal. I have been for a very long time. By my honor and my oath... even when I disagree with them I can't..." Cassandra stood and touched her arm, "Sorry. I shouldn't have asked." The elf sagged a bit, "It's fine. You were just... doing what you do best Cassandra. Looking for the truth. I have to go." Irasir'in left the human there, the woman's hand lowering to her side, feeling like the truth of the elf she cared for was hovering just out of her reach. Like she had so many pieces to a puzzle but was missing just one or two to see the picture they made. To see what really weighed on the shoulders of the woman asked to be their Inquisitor. 


	24. Blackwall

A/N: Hello everyone! Life has been real busy lately, lost my job to cost cutting, got a new one, and now it looks like I'm going to be moving a month or so. Either to an apartment or out of state. I relax a moment and life throws rocks at my head, it's great. But I still enjoy writing so I'll pop in as often as I can. That said, read and I hope you enjoy!

Blackwall

The Inquisitor slipped into the stables quietly, finding her horse with a practiced ease. She insisted on caring for the animal herself whenever she could, feeling that if her mount was going to be carrying her into whatever unknown dangers came next then the least she could do was feed it. Her position didn't allow for the daily attention a horse needed, but she did what she could. She was brushing the horse when she heard the voices drift over to her, Cassandra familiar accent and Blackwall's deeper tone clear to her as they entered the stable, "You're sure you haven't heard of that before?" She could almost hear the shake of the man's head, "No. Why are you asking me though? I'm sure she would tell you if you asked her." Cassandra sighed, "I have asked. She's sworn to secrecy, and I won't press her to break that oath." She imagined Blackwall's frown as he asked, "So you're going behind her back and asking others to pry?" The Seekers voice grew defensive, "I am only worried about her. Something about her clan is weighing on her, and I'm worried that it might hurt her if we aren't prepared for whatever it is." There was a pause before Blackwall said slowly, "Perhaps you should let it alone Seeker. People keep secrets for a reason, and maybe prying into hers will do more harm to her than good. For all you know there might be people hunting who she was, and if it was learned the Inquisitor is the one they're looking for..." Cassandra finished the thought darkly, "They might come for her... and she has problems and enemies enough as it is. I'll think on it for a time then. Good evening Warden." She listened to the woman leave and silently went back to her task. She heard Blackwall walking further in and start to pass her stall before doubling back to stop outside it. There was a long silence before, "I suppose you heard all of that then."

The elf didn't look away from the horse, "She's worried. It's understandable." Blackwall shifted forward and a creak of wood signaled him leaning against the post of the stall, "But you don't really want her to look into it do you?" She sighed, "No. Thank you for saying as much to her." She finally looked over at him, "You of all people can understand not wanting someone to pry into your past I'm sure." He frowned, "What's that supposed mean?" She snorted, "You think I missed it? You never answer questions about yourself with specifics. No names or places. Keeping it vague but detailed enough to be an answer. We both know those tricks." He shifted uncomfortably and she shook her head, "I won't ask. But you should know it's not subtle if that's what you were looking for." Silence fell for awhile before he sighed, "I've been told the truth is easier than lies. Can't say if I agree or not." Irasir'in set the brush aside and answered softly, "Just because it's easier doesn't make it better. It's easy to say whatever comes to mind, but it won't stop the damage it can cause. Then again, some secrets can do the same." He studied her before asking slowly, "If you had a chance to come clean, to bare your secrets to the light of day and make everything right, would you?" She looked up at the ceiling, "Honestly? If I could tell Cassandra everything I would, without a second thought. Lying and keeping secrets never suited me in the first place. But I can't tell the truth, and it wouldn't change anything or right any wrongs. Still, even if it would change nothing or cause me hardships later, I would tell the truth anyway. For my own sake. Lies eat at us, poison our minds and the relationships we build, and leave a rot in their wake. As living things of this mortal plain, we need truth in our lives." He just stared at the horse in front of him as she walked away from it and slipped past, "I won't ask what your hiding Blackwall. Just make sure it doesn't end up hurting everyone around you."

That night as the Inquisitor and Seeker sought comfort from the concerns of life with each other, the Warden was quietly gathering his things. He heard heavy boots hit the boards of the barn floor, a half dozen or so by his count. A voice called up into the rafters, "We know you're up there. Come on down and let's have a chat." Blackwall paused and grabbed his sword as well, but left it sheathed as he slowly climbed down. Six men and women stood in the exits of the barn, they wore chainmail and carried sheathed weapons on their hips. The crest of the Wardens shone clearly on their breasts and the one that had spoke gave him a cool look, "The Inquisitor is my ally, so I'll start this off nice as I can. Who are you?" He shifted uneasily under the gaze of the Wardens, "I am Blackwall." The man shook his head slowly, "No. You're not." He took a step back from the cautiously, but he had no where to go, answering as fear flashed across his eyes, "And who are you to say otherwise?" The Wardens hands all went to their hilts, but the man raised a hand to wave them off without looking, "I am Warden-Commander Vallden Sorn, Commander of the Grey for Ferelden. The men and woman with me are all friends of Blackwall, people whose lives he saved. They would know his face anywhere, and you are not him. Now I don't want to cause the Inquisitor trouble, but I won't let someone falsely claim to be one of my most honored brothers. So I say again. Who. Are. You."

Irasir'in frowned at the Inquisition messenger, "What do you mean he's gone?" The agent shifted nervously, "He's not in the stable ma'am, neither is his horse. We found these though..." She took the letter and crumpled report with it and read them. She cursed and stood, "Go tell the stable to get my horse ready. I'm departing for Val Royeaux immediately." The messenger nodded hurried and shot through the door to see it done. The Inquisitor cursed a few more times as she got her things together, Cassandra bursting through the door, "What's going on?" The elf gestured to the letter, "Read for yourself, I'll make sure a horse is ready for you too but we have to hurry." In the courtyard she was surprised to see the Warden-Commander and his honor guard already saddling their horses, "Warden-Commander Sorn, what are you doing here?" The Warden gave her a tired smile that made him look older than she remembered seeing him, "I have business in Orlais, it seems dark spawn were sighted in their western territories. I'm not sure how much truth there is to it, but I needed to get out and off my rear for a time anyway. Where are you off to?" She met a stable hand with her horse, sending him off to fetch Cassandra's, "Blackwall ran off to Val Royeaux without speaking to anyone. I'm concerned about what he's doing, and if it's what I'm fearing..." The Warden-Commander nodded, "I understand. Allow me and my men to escort you then, we're heading that way anyway and the roads are a bit risky for the Inquisitor herself to be riding without a guard." She frowned a moment before nodding, "Fair enough." Cassandra hurried out of the main hall as her horse was led out of the stable, and Irasir'in continued, "But we leave now, we don't have time to waste when Blackwall has such a lead on us already." The Warden-Commander just nodded.

A few days later their small party trotted into a city buzzing with excitement, a brief chat with the guards revealing that a man claiming to be Thom Rainier had stormed into the execution of one of his men and declared himself the only one guilty of the man's crimes. Irasir'in felt her stomach drop out as she remembered the report, exchanging a look with the grim Cassandra. It wasn't hard to put the pieces together on this. She looked back at the Wardens flanking them, the Warden-Commander's face was an emotionless mask, "Warden Sorn, I..." He shifted his implacable gaze on her, "Did you know anything about this?" She shook her head, "I knew he liked to keep his secrets close. But this?" She shook her head again, confused and feeling betrayed. The Wardens face didn't change, "I would like to be there when you speak to him then. I don't need to talk to him myself, I simply want to hear what he has to say." She nodded.

Three hours later she was pacing, "We have to do something." Cassandra frowned, "He lied to us. He's lied to us from the start. He doesn't even try to hide it now. We have to do nothing but watch him hang for his crimes and lies." Irasir'in shook her head, "He did lie but he's doing nothing but his best to atone for his crimes. Even coming here was selfless, if he had never left Skyhold then no one would have known to even question him." Cassandra shook her head, "We would have found out eventually." The elf sighed, "It's a moot point on if we would. The point is he didn't need to give himself up just to save one man, or join us. But he did. That's at least worth enough for us to stay the executioners blade." The Seeker looked less than convinced. Before they could keep arguing the door to the building holding Blackwall opened and the two woman looked in surprise as the man himself emerged, looking tired and dirty but alive. And not in chains. On his heels followed the Wardens, Sorn at their head. She started heading towards them, but at a soft word from the Warden-Commander the other warriors guided Blackwall away as Sorn and one of his men intercepted her, "Inquisitor." She gave him a worried look, "What happened? Where are they going?" The Warden-Commander gave her a look tired and older than usual, "They're taking him to a small property we Wardens own here in the city." The elf frowned, "Why?" But the answer came from Cassandra, who gave him an incredulous look, "You conscripted him?" The Warden nodded and Irasir'in blinked, "Why?" The man sighed, "Because I have heard what he's done at your side. I've heard why he lied, why he stopped lying, and why he chose to take up the mantle of my fallen brother. Among the Wardens we don't care about your past, we don't care about your crimes, we just care if you can stand beside us as a brother or sister in the Grey. I have decided he will fit in our ranks. I will of course allow him to continue his work beside you, just after we have made him a Warden." She was silently for awhile before finally nodding, looking accepting if not over joyed, "Very well. I suppose... I can understand your reasons." He gave her a warmer smile, "That and this way your hands are clean. We Wardens have always been known to take on criminals, never concerning ourselves with how it looks when we pull a man from the hangman's noose. We do a job no one else can or wants to, fighting dark spawn and the monsters of the Blight. It's dirty, bloody, and a death sentence so no one complains too much. Your Inquisition though? You're trying to do so much more than just fight. You're trying to shape the world. You need to keep yourselves to a higher standard." Irasir'in relented, "Ok. It was a good idea. Would be nice if you had told me before you did it though." He gave her a cheeky look, "I am the Warden-Commander of Ferelden and acting Commander of Orlais, it's my job not to tell people anything." She just shook her head.

The Wardens rode from the city heading wwst, a token escort being left with the Inquisitor for her trip back to Skyhold. Blackwall rode with them, looking better than earlier but still tired. He pulled his horse up beside the Warden-Commander, "You planned this didn't you." He flashed him a smile, "You're not the first Warden to be pulled out from a prison we talked you into. It's a test of sorts, answers the question of if you're willing to self sacrifice without us having to see if your words are honest in the process. You'll find many men and woman that made poor decisions that hurt others in our ranks. What's important to us is if you can fight, and if you'll face death for others sake. Everything else is secondary." The other man frowned, "Seems kind of an underhanded way of doing it." The Warden snorted, "You really want to bring up morality Ser Rainier?" Thom Rainier lowered his eyes, "No. I suppose not." The Warden-Commander gave him a sidelong smile, "We don't talk about why we joined the Wardens. Or if we do we tend towards either understatement or over-exaggeration." Rainier nodded and they traveled in silence, the Wardens around them chatting amongst themselves lightly. That night he started off feeling isolated, but quickly found himself with a bowl of hot food and a mug full of some sort of alcohol that had a strong bite and implacable flavor. They talked about fights and nights drinking, stories clearly meant to ease his mind and draw him in. And in the second mug he found himself laughing along. The Warden-Commander kept more to himself, just adding in the occasional comment and nursing only one cup of the drink for the night. He was friendly but clearly not a part of the general troops. The next day they arrived at a camp, a small team of Wardens bustling around it. He was sent with the other men to take care of the horses and supplies as Commander Sorn went off to speak with the Warden in charge of the camp. He chuckled as the Wardens joked amongst themselves, one clearly hinting what he thought the Warden-Commander was really going to do when he went to see the female officer running the camp. A few hours of rest later and he was called to the Warden-Commander's tent, the man looking over maps with the officer beside him. Another female Warden stood across from the map table from them, her face carefully schooled into neutrality. The Warden-Commander looked up at him with a smile, "Welcome Rainier. Settling in well?"

He nodded, "I am so far, but it is still early." The Warden nodded as he picked up a water skin, "I understand. Unfortunately you won't have time to relax for long, we found a few unmarked entrances to the Deep Roads, ones made by the Dark Spawn themselves if we're any judge. We've already started securing them, but this means we need every blade on the move. And I have a specific job for yours." He nodded to the Warden across the table, "This is Warden Hawke. She is going to escort you into the Deep Roads, I want you two to scout out the Dark Spawn strong points down there. And you Rainier are to complete a special task while doing it. I want you to collect a vial of Dark Spawn blood." He blinked, "Er... Dark Spawn... blood ser?" He nodded but didn't explain to the man's confused expression. Finally Rainier relented, "Understood Ser. I'll do it." He nodded, "Good. Warden Hawke, I leave our new recruit in your capable hands." She saluted, "Yes Warden-Commander." He nodded again and dismissed them with a gesture as he went back to the map, "I've already called for reinforcements, they'll be here in four days. Once they arrive..." The Warden led him out and spoke calmly, "I've heard a bit about you... Rainier. I expect you will not have a great difficulty matching blades with the Dark Spawn, but you need to be cautious while we're in the Deep Roads. The Roads are unforgiving and the Dark Spawn more numerous than you'll ever imagine." The Warden recruit nodded, "I understand Warden Hawke." She gave him a humorless smile, "Perhaps. Perhaps not. Just stay with me and you'll be fine." The two gathered supplies and headed out to the edge of the entrance of the Deep Roads, a small group of hard looking Wardens standing guard at it. Bodies of Dark Spawn were left burned to one side, a testament to the harsh fighting that has been taking place here. One of the guards flashed them a smile, "Bringing the fresh meat into the Roads Beth?" She snorted, "I told you to stop calling me that. And yes we are going in. They still stirred up?" He nodded, "We're getting a break while they regroup, but it's all we can do to hold." She grimly smiled, "The Warden-Commander is here now. Nothing is going to break our lines with him acting as the lynchpin. Well can't delay longer, too much danger of getting caught out disfavorably if we do. I'll see you guys when we get back. Come on recruit, we've got our work cut out for us." Thom Rainier, the man previously known as Blackwall, nodded his agreement and followed Warden Hawke into the Deep Roads. 


End file.
